Pictures of You
by troublefollows1017
Summary: Bella comes to Seattle for her friends' wedding only to find that someone from her recent past has ties to her friends as well. Suddenly faced with the man that broke her heart and a kidnapping, Bella tries to solve two mysteries. AH/AU
1. Prologue

EPOV

**Pop! Pop! Pop!**

Gunshots. I knew that was what I was hearing.

Then nothing. I heard nothing. No screaming, no footsteps running away from the sounds I heard moments before. _Nothing._

I felt nothing and everything all at the same time. Numbness and pain at once. Pain I couldn't even imagine. She was the most important thing in my life, the only thing that mattered. She was dead, and it was all my fault.

How would I ever live without her, and how would I ever be able to live with myself?


	2. Chapter 1 We Meet Again

**A/N: I don't own any of the characters from Twilight. This story will switch off POV between Edward and Bella. Enjoy!**

BPOV

I could feel the heat racing up my neck and flushing my cheeks. "Well, I really don't care what your computer says. What I am telling you is that I have a reservation. I have had a reservation for months. I gave you my confirmation number; I don't understand what the problem is here."

"Well, what I am telling you is that we have no record of any Bella Swan in the system, ma'am."

Now, I took an oath to serve and protect, but right now, I pretty much wanted to lean over the counter and show this snotty, pain in my ass, front desk clerk where she could put her records and systems.

"I am here as a guest of Miss Hale," I huffed, exasperated after fifteen minutes of arguing and watching her click clack on her computer only to argue with me some more.

Suddenly, Miss We-Ain't-Got-No-Record-of-You turned a little red herself. "Miss Hale? Oh, I am so sorry. Let me see what's going on here." She began click clacking with slightly more zip.

"Bella? Bella is that you?" _Speak of the devil._

I turned around and there she was, in her glory. Rosalie Hale was one of my very best friends from high school. To say Rose was simply beautiful was an insult. Rosalie Hale was exquisite. She had a body that didn't stop, long golden-blond hair, and a face that any model from here to Paris would die for. Not only was she gorgeous, but she was brilliant as well. Top of her class at Harvard Law and now a rising star at a huge law firm in Seattle. Oh, and she also happened to be the daughter of the extremely wealthy owner of the hotel I was currently being kept out of by someone named, Jessica, according to the little brass name tag that was pinned on her suit coat. I preferred to call her The Bane, the current bane of my existence.

"Rosalie! Looking as gorgeous as ever." We hugged, and I turned back to The Bane, who started click clacking like there was no tomorrow. I probably had a very smug look on my face, but I really couldn't help it.

"Did you just get here?" Rosalie asked, her eyes twinkling with excitement.

"Oh, I've been here for a little bit." I turned and shot another smile at The Bane, who, in turn, click clacked like her life depended on it and kind of looked like she might cry.

"Is there a problem?" Rose turned to look at The Bane as well.

"No! No problem Miss Hale. I just wanted to upgrade Miss Swan here to one of our deluxe rooms, since she's here as a guest of yours," The Bane, I mean Jessica, said while looking like she might pass out or get sick all over herself. I hoped neither happened. I could like her now that she was handing me the key card to my room, finally.

"Ok, good. Now get someone to take Bella's bags up to her room. Go!" Rosalie snapped at Jessica and then turned towards me. "I am so glad you could come early and help me! I have been trying my best to stay calm, but the closer the day gets, the more crazed I start to feel. And you know how I value my composure."

I couldn't help but laugh. Rosalie was the most well put together person I have ever met. She could hold her own in any situation. She was always cool, calm, and collected. Sometimes to the point that people, who didn't know her well, thought she was kind of cold, an ice princess or sorts. In reality, she was just extremely competent and confident. Women like that tended to come off as bitchy. Rosalie was not a bitch, though. She was one of the sweetest and most generous women I have ever met.

"Well, where the hell is Alice? She's your wedding planner, she should be the one running around crazed."

Alice was my other best friend from high school. She had dropped out of college and started up her own event planning business in Seattle. With some help from Mr. Hale and his hotel, her venture took off. She was recently featured in the paper as one of Seattle's newest Who's Who in business.

"Oh, you know her, she's flitting here and there. I can't get her to stand still and talk to me for more than ten seconds tops," Rosalie complained.

"Well, I'm here now and you know I don't do _flitting_." I winked and she laughed. She hugged me again.

"It is so good to have you back here, Bells. We miss you all the time." She held the embrace a few more seconds, and the sincerity in her voice made it impossible for me to make some sarcastic remark. We came apart, smiling.

"Thanks, Rose. I wouldn't miss your wedding for anything, you know that."

"Bella! Bella!" A voice rang out behind us. All I heard after that was a very high pitched squeal, one that made the annoying blush return to my cheeks.

"Alice-" Before I could say anything else, she pounced on me. "Alice-" I tried to break free from her grip and the wild jumping that was making me look like I was hopping up and down as well.

"You made it! Now everything is going to be perfect. Oh my gosh, everything is fantastic. Wait to you see the ballroom. And the dresses. And just wait until everything is put together and you see the flowers we picked out and the centerpieces. Oh, you will never believe who's coming and who's not coming. Lauren, out. I heard her mother talked to Mrs. Hale and heard that we were doing calla lilies. Now, I knew they were going to do calla lilies for Lauren and Tyler's wedding next month, but then I heard that since they knew we were doing it first and that, obviously, we would have the best, Mrs. Mallory demanded that Lauren change her flowers last minute, and now she's going to be stuck with roses. She's so pissed she sent a note saying she can't attend now because of 'an unexpected family engagement'. Ha! It's such a lie it's not even funny."

I shook my head to try to stay alert during the deluge of gossip I was being asked to process in such a short amount of time.

_Click. Click. Click._

The sound of the camera caught my attention, and I turned in the direction of the flash of light that accompanied it.

"The bride with her bridesmaids, we need to document that." His voice was like music, smooth and melodic. I would have known that voice anywhere. I would never have expected it here.

Rosalie smiled and started shuffling me and Alice into a posed position. She stood in between us and wrapped her arms around our waists.

"Here, get one with us actually paying attention."

I blinked and blinked again trying to make sense of what I was seeing. He put his camera down, and his beautiful green eyes met mine in what looked like surprise as well. He quickly lifted his camera back up, and his mouth fell into a straight line.

"Okay, smile, ladies," he encouraged.

I couldn't smile though, I couldn't get the stupid ass stunned look off my face, I'm sure.

"Bella, smile," he said as he dropped the camera slightly and looked at me with those eyes that made my head spin.

I struggled to plaster the faintest grin on my surely flaming red face.

"Bella? Edward, how did you know this was Bella?" Rosalie waited to ask until after the picture was taken.

Edward dropped the camera from in front of his face and smiled that damn crooked smile. "Well, it seems Chicago isn't as big of a city as we all thought."


	3. Chapter 2 What Are The Chances

EPOV

There she was, standing next to the woman my brother was going to marry in a few days. Standing there with those damn chocolate brown eyes and those sweet pink cheeks. Standing there hating me, hating me the way most people end up hating me after they get to know me. I tried to play it off, like this was no big deal, but I'm sure she could see the surprise in my eyes. My eyes always gave me away with her.

What the hell were the chances? My big brother, Emmett, Seattle's charming and ever morally-sound assistant DA, was marrying someone who knew the only woman I have ever let myself even begin to care about. I knew she came from out west, but I never imagined she would be connected to the high and mighty Hale family.

Rosalie couldn't wait to understand the connection. "You two know each other? That's crazy! Bella, how could you not tell me you knew Emmett's brother?"

"I didn't know he was Emmett's brother," she replied, avoiding all eye contact with me.

Of course she didn't know Emmett was my brother. I hadn't told her anything about my family. In fact she was starting to get annoyed with my silly stories about where I came from. You know, I told her I was an orphan, who was adopted by this really eccentric, bald multimillionaire from New York. Then there was the one about being raised by my Auntie Em who lived in Kansas. The "My parents are spies for the American government and are currently living in a cave in Afghanistan" story was the last one she could stand listening to. Not that I didn't want to tell her the truth, she was probably the first person I was willing to let into my world, but things ended much too quickly for that to happen.

Rosalie was uncharacteristically giddy. I had, at first, pegged her as a stuck up bitch but was learning she wasn't so bad. "This is incredible! Wait until Emmett finds out!"

"Wait until Emmett finds out what?" The loud booming voice of my brother came from behind me. Emmett was a beast. He was tall, muscular, and almost as good looking as me. He could take my ass in a fight, but I would still look better even with fat lip and a black eye.

"Bella and Edward know each other! Can you believe it? There are how many million people in Chicago, and these two somehow stumble upon each other. What are the chances?" Rosalie pondered.

"Oh God, Bells. Please tell me if I need to apologize for anything or everything he has done."

_Bells?__ Did my brother just call her Bells?_

"How have you been, Detective? Was your flight on time?" He moved over to her and picked her up in one of his big bear hugs.

Her cheeks, those soft cheeks, got all red. "I'm good Em. You know O'Hare, nothing leaves on time, but it wasn't too bad."

Emmett let go of Bella and immediately wrapped his arms around Rosalie. They kissed, and I tried to stop myself from making gagging noises. My perfect brother and his perfect bride. Oh, how happy he would make my perfect parents in a few days. They will probably go on to have two or three perfect children and make my parents perfect grandparents. As for me, I will eternally be the family fuck up.

"Now really, tell me, do you know him because you had to arrest him or something? You can tell me. I can believe just about anything about my little brother." Emmett came over to punch me in the shoulder. I smiled and forced my eyes to not roll around.

"No, never had to arrest him. We, ah, have friends in common, that's all."

_Um, yeah we have no friends in common. But okay, she's making this interesting._

She looked at me all adorable and pissed off, then back at Rosalie. "If I had known you were going to have the paparazzi here, I would have planned ahead."

_Papafuckingrazzi?_ She knew that would hurt. She knew I hated that word with a passion. I had to pay the fucking rent and eat now and then. Photography, as an art, doesn't make as much money as photography for celebrity hungry magazines makes. I knew I had sold my soul; it didn't mean I felt good about it.

"How are those friends of ours? I haven't spoken to Jake in a while. How's he doing?" I asked with the most innocent look I could muster. Two could play this game.

The little wedding planner one jumped in, "Jake? When did you see Jake, Bella?"

Bella looked extremely flustered. Her eyes, enraged, shot to mine. Then, she pulled herself together in a flash. "Wow, I am just wiped from traveling all day. I would just really love to go check out my room and change out of these clothes. Do you guys mind?"

_Running. Smooth move._ She hugged her friends and my brother for a second time and gave me a look that didn't totally make sense. It was like I had confused her or something, like she couldn't understand why I would bring his name into all of this. He was the reason I bailed. He was the reason she would have eventually bailed, wasn't he?

Bella made a mad dash to the elevators while the elfin-like, spiky-haired one bounced off, saying something about flowers and candles after sharing a concerned look with Rosalie. That one frightened me a little.

Rosalie and Emmett also seemed to be exchanging worried looks. Emmett whispered something in her ear and she nodded. Her expression softened, and she turned to me. "Edward, this is just so great that you and Bella know each other. She is one of my very best friends, like family practically," Rosalie gushed.

I sensed Bella had that effect on people. You couldn't help but love her. She was smart, sassy, and strong. I knew that was why I dared to let her in. She was too good for someone like me, though. I was sure I was just a fun little distraction. I mean, that was the part I was born to play. I was the sexy, fun-loving boy toy. I wasn't someone you brought home to mom. Hell, I didn't bring myself home to my own mother. That was why I moved to Chicago, to get away from my family. At least I didn't have to see the embarrassment and disappointment on their faces all the time. My mother loved me, but I wasn't Emmett. I wasn't out there making the world a better place like she had raised us to do. My father, I didn't know how my father felt about me. I was pretty sure he tried to not feel anything or even think about me, for that matter. Again, I was not Emmett.

"I swear Edward, Bella better be telling me the truth. If she really knows you for other reasons I will kick your ass." Emmett pointed his finger at me.

My brother was harmless. In fact, he had never taken advantage of his size and pounded on me like every other brother on the planet had done one time or another to their annoying, troublemaking, younger brother. My brother was blessed with the gentle soul of my mother. He was kind and compassionate under all that manliness you saw on the outside. Emmett was always my protector growing up. He would cover for me with our dad, even when I didn't deserve it, even when there was no way my dad would believe Emmett had done something for which I was so obviously to blame. He tried talking to me and to push me to make better decisions. He actually was the only one in the family who encouraged me to pursue photography. He told me I had real talent and I should do what made me happy. Emmett was the perfect big brother. Too bad he was wasted on me.

"I have yet to be arrested in Chicago, Em. New York, LA, San Francisco, Denver, Atlanta - now that's a different story." I wasn't lying but smiled to ease the look on Rosalie's face.

"Hilarious, little brother. Anyway, I'm here because Mom and Dad should be here any minute. I wanted to make sure everything was set up for them." Emmett, the perfect son, ready and waiting.

He went to the front desk to talk to the clerk. Rosalie stepped closer to me.

"So, you know Jake?" she asked, raising an eyebrow and almost whispering.

_Shit. _ I didn't know they would all know this Jake character. Chicago was just not far enough away, I guess. Or this Jake guy was really important to Bella. That was probably it. He probably was her boyfriend. Of course her friends would know her boyfriends, guys she really cared about. That was why they had no idea about me.

"Ahh, you know, I kind of know him. He knows people that I know. And then, you know, he knows Bella. Then I knew Bella, and we all kind of know each other. You know?" Perhaps the idiotic rambling would annoy her enough not to pursue this line of questioning.

She eyed me warily, like my IQ was perhaps a little on the low end of the bell curve. She started talking, not really to me but more to herself. "God, I hope that is not what has been going on with her lately. I knew something was wrong but she is just so damn secretive about everything. Unless I have the girl in front of me and can see her face change color, she can keep me guessing. But now she is going to have tell me face to face what is going on. Tell Emmett I will see him at dinner." She glided off to the elevators like a lioness gracefully stalking her prey.

I had no idea what that meant. I suddenly felt bad, like I had caused trouble for Bella when all I wanted to do was give her a little jab. Let her know I knew. But Rosalie definitely did not seem pleased that Bella and this Jake might be together. I couldn't help but wonder what that was about.

Emmett's hand came down on my shoulder, "Okay, so Mom and Dad will be here soon. Their suite is ready and waiting. We have dinner at five-thirty. Do not be late. The Hales have gone to a lot of trouble to make things beyond perfect for us. Where did Rose go?"

"She went to check on Bella, I think. She said she'll see you at dinner." I filled in the blanks the best I could.

"Do you really know this Jake guy?" Emmett asked with a much too serious look on his face.

"Not really, I know of him." Lying was not easy with Emmett looking at me, he could always tell when I was lying. "They're dating, right?" I was dying to know the answer now.

"Dating?" He laughed without humor. "I would kill that guy before I would let him anywhere near Bells. I'll see you at dinner. _Don't_ be late."

_Bells. _I wondered, again, how well my brother knew this girl. For my brother to say he would kill someone instead of throw him in jail, meant that this Jake guy was beyond no good. What the hell was going on?


	4. Chapter 3 I'm Fine

BPOV

_What the hell was going on?_

I felt like my life just spun out of control, and I did not do out of control. My mother did out of control beautifully, but I was my father's daughter. I did not let things get out of control.

Edward was here. Edward and his unbelievably beautiful face, his mesmerizing green eyes, his velvety voice, his adorable little grin.

_Ugh! _I hated this. I hated him. I hated that I even thought about him. This was not me being in control. To top it off, he had to throw Jake's name into all this? How the hell did he even know about Jake? Rosalie, Alice, and Emmett were going to have my head.

I decided it was best to just take a shower and get changed into some new clothes, try to wash away all the troubling thoughts. I slipped into one of the big, fluffy robes the hotel provided and wrapped my hair up in one the luxurious towels. The Hales have always been about luxury. Rosalie was the only high school girl, I knew, to drive a Mercedes to school. She always had the best clothes and gadgets. She always had the newest cell phone or music player and a designer purse for every outfit. It amazed me everyday that she was as down to earth as she was. Her silver spoon was so big. Somehow she managed to see that it was better to use that spoon to help feed others and not just herself. Rose was amazing.

There was loud knocking at my door. Amazing, and apparently a little angry. Rosalie pushed her way in as soon as I turned the knob.

"Spill." She crossed her arms in front of her, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Spill, what?" Playing dumb wouldn't work but was worth a try.

"We get restraining orders, you moved thousands of miles away, and yet Jake was in Chicago and introduced you to Edward?"

I closed my eyes in frustration._ Fucking Edward_. What the hell had he told Rose now?

"He did not introduce me to Edward. He doesn't even know Edward. Rose, forget about it, really. You do not need to be worried about me when you have all this other stuff going on."

Rosalie would have none of that. It was so much easier to shift focus off of me when we were on the phone.

"Bella, was Jake in Chicago?"

"Yes." There was no point in lying.

"And..." Rosalie pressed.

"And... nothing. He texted me a few times. I ignored him. He came by my apartment, and I broke his jaw. That's it." I turned my back to her, so she couldn't see my face.

"He came to your apartment, and you broke his jaw? Holy shit, Bella! Did you have him arrested for violating the restraining order? Why didn't you tell us? Why didn't you tell me?" Rosalie grabbed my arm and swung me around to face her.

_Damn it!_ I could kill Edward fucking Cullen right now. He somehow pulled Jake's name out of his ass and got everyone all worked up. It was bad enough that the day after I had to deal with my stalker ex-boyfriend practically attacking me and forcing himself on me on the hallway of my apartment building, I had to walk in on what I thought was my current boyfriend entertaining two, half-naked blondes in his apartment. I had been such a damn fool.

"Rose, I handled it. I broke his jaw and sent him to jail. It's fine. If it hadn't been fine, I would have told you, but there was no reason to get you all worked up over here when you were in the midst of your wedding planning. Everything is fine; it was seriously a couple months ago. History. Over." I took the towel off my head and started running my fingers through the tangled mess.

"Bella. You have to be more careful." I could see the concern and worry on her face. Miss Calm, Cool, and Collected was not feeling that way right now.

"It's fine. He never in a million years thought I would really use the restraining order. He thought I was bluffing. He knows now there is no bluffing."

"Bluffing? You left Seattle. You moved to Chicago. I am pretty sure you couldn't be more clear about wanting him out of your life." Rosalie still sounded worried.

"I left Seattle for a lot of reasons, Rose. You know that. Jake was one of the reasons but not the only one." _No, not the only one._ My father's death, my mother's alcohol induced spiral, these were other reasons I had to get away.

My mother was so clueless about everything and anything that she had been the one who told Jake where I was and how to get ahold of me. I couldn't stop myself from blaming her for the bruises that were left on my arms when he grabbed me or the bump on my head from when he slammed me up against the wall. He hurt me, but I hurt him back. I was fine. I had to be fine because there no one else who was going to take care of me. I had thought for the briefest moment that Edward was possibly the exception, but I had been blinded by his good looks and his false charm. God, I hated myself for ever thinking he was something real.

"You're sure you're okay? I swear if anything were to happen to you." Rosalie grabbed my arms and looked at me.

"I'm fine. I am more than okay. Nothing is going to happen to me. The most excitement I face is crying my eyes out in a few days when my gorgeous best friend walks down the aisle to marry a real Prince Charming." Emmett and Rosalie were perfectly paired, cut from the same beautiful cloth.

She hugged me one more time. "Okay, dinner. Five-thirty. Don't be late."

I promised I wouldn't miss it and went back to trying to relax. Dinner. With the family. With the _families_. Edward. Dinner with my friends and his family. Funny, I imagined a family dinner some day just not like this and definitely not after everything happened.

_Edward_. He was the new bane of my damned existence.


	5. Chapter 4 Family Dinner

EPOV

I walked into the hotel lobby, convinced I had enough time to run down the street, buy some cigarettes, smoke one, and still get to dinner on time. I had quit smoking over a year ago, but there was something about this dinner that was making me want to pick the habit back up. I was just about to make a dash for it when I saw them.

"Edward, sweetheart! Look at you!" My mother's voice was full of motherly concern. "Too skinny, honey. You are not taking as good care of yourself as you promised you would." She had an unintentional way of letting me know once again I had failed at something. Apparently, I couldn't even feed myself properly. Hey, not everyone could look like Emmett.

"Mother, it's good to see you." I wrapped my obviously malnutritioned arms around her.

"Oh, how I have missed you, darling." She hugged me back and then pulled herself away so my father could approach.

"Edward." My father nodded in my direction.

"Dad." I nodded back. We were big talkers, me and my dad. Yep, once you got us started, watch out!

My mother wrapped her arm around mine and started pulling me towards the dining room and away from my nonjudgmental, nerve-calming, almost cigarettes.

"So, is this hotel not the most beautiful place you have ever seen? This is the perfect spot for your brother's wedding, don't you think?"

"It is very nice, Mother. Everything is top notch. Mr. Hale seems to be doing very well for himself."

"It's a testament to the man's work ethic, son. When a man works hard, he can provide for those he cares about, for his family," my dad chimed in.

_Here we go..._

"Well, all work and no play makes me a dull boy." I wiggled my eyebrows, trying to get my mom to laugh.

My dad sighed and shook his head in disgust. My mother patted my arm and looked at me like I was breaking her heart. I was nothing if not predictable.

Emmett swooped in and saved us all. "Mom, Dad!" He ran up to my mother and lifted her right off her feet.

"Emmett!" She clung to him tightly. Being around Emmett made my mom absolutely glow.

My father walked up and gave Emmett a very fatherly hug, patting him on the back a few times. He had never hugged me like that. Ever.

"Son." Our father beamed.

"Are you all settled, is the room okay?" Emmett asked knowing everything was perfect because he had seen to it.

"Oh, sweetheart, everything is wonderful. The suite you got us is amazing!" Mother gushed.

"Everything is perfect, Em. We have no complaints whatsoever," Dad added. No complaints from him except that his loser son was there and breathing the same air as him and his golden child. Other than that, no complaints. I hated my life.

"Great. We have the private dining room all set up. Rosalie is so excited for all of us to sit down together and go over the final details. We are so glad you guys could come early."

"I can't imagine wanting to be anywhere else, not with both my boys here!" I knew she meant it. My mother never lies.

We walked into a room that looked more like a wine cellar than a dining room. The walls were covered, floor to ceiling, in shelves that held hundreds of wine bottles. In the center of the room was a long rectangular table surrounded by large upholstered chairs. There was a small bar set against the very back wall. The lighting was dim and several candles glowed on the table. It was a wine man's dream. I was a wine man.

Mr. and Mrs. Hale were both in the room with Rosalie. They greeted my family warmly. Mr. Howard Hale was your typical man of wealth. He was tall and distinguished looking. He wore an expensive suit and a watch that probably cost more than my car. He smiled and was polite, but I could tell he wasn't as impressed with us as we were with him. Mrs. Hale looked like Rosalie, just older. She was probably often mistaken for Rose's older sister. If she was any indication as to how Rosalie is going to age, my brother was even luckier that I thought that bastard could be.

Our parents struck up easy conversation, and I did my best to fade into the background. I looked at some of the wine bottles on the shelves. They had some expensive shit in here. More of the guests arrived. First the little wedding planner and her boyfriend. I thought she introduced him as Jazz. _Who the hell names their kid Jazz?_ I didn't have time to contemplate the guy's weird parents because _she_ walked in. Five-thirty on the dot.

Bella's long brown hair cascaded down her back. I didn't even need to be close to her to know it smelled like milk and honey - sweet, pure, and simple. She was wearing a sapphire blue blouse and black dress pants. Bella, she was not a lover of dresses.

I smiled as I remembered the first time I saw her. It was my first showing in the small gallery off Halsted in the Loop. She was wearing the same outfit as tonight. I remembered the way that blue against her milky white skin made me stare a little longer than I should have. She noticed my ogling and called me out on it. We struck up a conversation, and I couldn't help be drawn to her. She was so smart and noticed things in the photographs that other people didn't take the time to notice - the look on someone's face, a sign in the background that said something ironic, the colors and the perspective. She got it. I was surprised when she told me she worked as a detective for the CPD. She was so fragile looking. Maybe it was because her skin looked like porcelain, but I couldn't imagine her chasing down bad guys. As the night progressed, I could see how she used other skills to be successful in a job like that. Her perceptiveness, her intelligence, her inner strength. Just the way she spoke and carried herself told me her inner strength was what made her tough. I wondered what someone like her was doing at my show. She said something about her father and his love of photography. I remembered how quiet she got after that and how it made me want to take care of her. Then almost as quickly as she shut off she righted herself and went back to discussing one of the photos. Somehow my charm and boyish good looks must have won her over and she accepted my invitation to dinner the following night. It was the beginning of the best two months of my life and for the first time, it wasn't just about the sex. Oh, the sex was fantastic, but it wasn't just about the sex. It wasn't just about the sex for me, but I can't say the same for her.

Another memory came rushing back. The morning two months ago when I woke up with her warm little body pressed tight to mine. We never got to spend much time together in the mornings because she always had to get to work. She was always on time for everything. Always. She was a little OCD about it. She kissed me with those soft pink lips and ran her gentle hands up and down my chest, making it very hard for me to let her get up and go take a shower. I was tired and decided to stay in bed instead of joining her in the shower, like I often did. I was drifting in and out. That's when her phone started ringing. The call went to voicemail. Then the beeping started, like she was being sent a text. And again with the beeping. And again. Then the ringing. I had had enough. I was tired, and the damn phone was beginning to piss me off. So, I answered it when it rang again. I was not the kind of guy who invaded my girl's privacy, it was completely a "need for peace" kind of moment. I answered it, and there was silence on the other end.

"Hello? Who is this?" I asked as pleasantly as I could in my tired, pissed-off mood.

"Who is this?" A voice seethed on the other end.

"This is Mayor fucking Daley, who is this?" I snipped.

"This is Jake, where's Bella?" the voice snapped.

"She can't come to the phone right this minute. Maybe you noticed that when you left thirty messages in thirty seconds." Seriously, had no one taught this guy any phone manners?

"I will kill you, whoever you are. She is mine!" I was not expecting this response. This made me snap the phone shut. I threw the phone back on the nightstand and looked up at the ceiling.

Who the hell was Jake and why was he going to kill me? Of course, what bothered me more was the _she is mine_ part. She was mine, at least I thought she was becoming mine. We spent a lot of time together. We had amazing sex. I was falling for her. I had fallen for her, who was I kidding. But there were parts of Bella that she didn't let me see. There were parts she kept hidden. Now, I knew I did the same but for good reason. What were her reasons?

Bella came out of the shower all adorably wrapped in my towel. She dropped the towel, making me seriously consider pulling her back in bed with me but then started dressing, ruining all my fun.

"You got a couple calls while you were in there. The phone was beeping like crazy. Someone must really need to talk to you."

I figured I'd let her check her messages and then tell me all about this Jake character. She put on her bra and shirt and left the shirt open as she climbed back on the bed and over me to get the phone. That damn lacy bra was the only thing between me and the two things I wanted more than anything. She grabbed the phone and sat next to me. I started kissing her hand and up her arm. I propped myself up and started kissing her smooth, firm stomach, and just before I made it to the lacy bra, she jumped out of bed and slammed her phone shut. She hurriedly got dressed.

"Bad news or something?" I asked, surprised by her reaction to whatever she was reading in her messages.

She looked frazzled, something Bella never was. "No, it's nothing. Work. I need to go. I'll call you."

She ran out of my room with her hair still wet and tangled. Again, not something Bella usually did. I got out of bed and pulled on some pants. She was out of the apartment before I even got out of the bedroom.

_Work, my ass_.

I was brought back to the dining room when my brother's big paw slapped me on the back, "Edward, Jasper here is a huge baseball fan. You guys should have lots to talk about."

Jazz, Jasper. Okay, still weird but not as weird. I turned and smiled at my brother and Jasper. He and I began talking baseball, something I wasn't ever great at playing but absolutely loved watching. I loved going to games in Chicago. Wrigley Field was my home away from home. I looked at Bella as she moved around the room and hugged the Hales. Rosalie was introducing her to my parents. I tried not to think about it. _Cubs, focus on the Cubs._

It wasn't long before we all sat. I was seated next to my mother with Jasper on the other side of me and Alice on the other side of him. Bella sat across from me, next to Rosalie and Mrs. Hale. Mr. Hale sat at the head of the table with my father on one side of him and his wife on the other. There were two empty seats, one for my brother's best man, Mike Newton, and the other I wasn't sure. A waitress came in and took our drink orders. As soon as she left, Mike rushed in the door, looking a little shaken.

Mike Newton worked in the DA's office with Emmett. He seemed like a good guy. We had a lot of fun together in Vegas for Emmett's bachelor party. The guy knew his way around a poker table. Mike had been the one who helped set up Rosalie and Emmett a couple years ago. His girlfriend, at the time, had been a friend of Rosalie's.

Mike shook hands with Emmett and waved to everyone else, apologizing for being late. Before he sat down, he got up and walked over to Bella.

"Bells!" _Again with the Bells._ Newton and my brother both had this nickname thing going on. I didn't know why it bothered me so. She stood up to greet him with a hug. "How's Chicago? They treating you right in the Windy City?"

"Everything is great, Mike. Really." The blush I knew was coming took over her cheeks.

"Well, we miss you around here." Mike moved behind Emmett and Rosalie putting a hand on each of their shoulders. "She helps me get these two fine looking people together, breaks my heart, and then moves away." Bella's cheeks found a deeper shade of red, and I couldn't help but choke on the sip of water I just took.

_Bella was the friend who hooked up Emmett and Rosalie? Bella used to date Mike Newton? _

Jasper hit me on the back as I coughed the water out of my lungs.

"Edward, are you all right?" My mother patted my arm making me feel five years old.

I coughed a couple more times and then regained my composure. "I'm fine. Sorry. Went down the wrong pipe. I'm good."

Bella looked at me with her big brown eyes, and I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. How many more ex-boyfriends could we bring into this mess? Maybe her high school boyfriend would be invited to the wedding. I was hoping Newton had a cigarette I could bum off him later. The guy smoked like a chimney in Vegas, he had to have one on him. Dinner with the family. This was more fun than I imagined.


	6. Chapter 5 ExBoyfriends

BPOV

Honestly, Edward nearly killed himself _drinking_ _water_. He obviously was a little shocked to hear I used to date Mike.

Mike Newton was decent looking. He had a good job. He was a solid guy. He was just kind of boring. Maybe boring wasn't the right word, I just couldn't imagine spending the rest of my life picking up after him and buying snacks for him and his friends on weekends while they watched football or played cards. He was that kind of guy. I was not that kind of girl. He would have provided for me, but that would be about it. So, we broke it off. It was far less dramatic than breaking up with Jake. A million times less painful than breaking up with Edward.

The dinner conversation was tolerable. Edward's staring made me a little uncomfortable. I could feel him looking at me, but as soon as I turned my eyes on him, the little green-eyed asshole would look away.

Mrs. Hale was going on about the dresses - her, ours, Rosalie's. Mrs. Cullen, or Esme as she requested I call her, listened intently.

"Now the girls dresses are Bill Levkoff, out of New York. Alice found them. They're stunning. Euro Champagne with a taupe sash. Strapless. Just beautiful. I know Bella is going to hate being in a dress, but she's going to be lovely."

"Not a fan of playing dress up, Bella?" Esme asked wide eyed, as if she couldn't imagine a girl who didn't like being girly.

I made a face, but Mrs. Hale jumped in. "Oh, back when the girls were in high school and Rosalie was in the pageants, we always had a million gowns in the house. Bella would come over in her jeans and t-shirt, it drove me nuts. I mean look at her, she is a beautiful girl. She doesn't have Rose's height or stature, you know, but I thought pageants would be fun for them to do together. But Bel-"

Just then Edward started choking again, this time on the very fine wine he had ordered. His face was red, and he grabbed a napkin to cover his mouth.

"Edward, sweetheart. What is with you tonight?" Esme turned her attention to him as Jasper hit him on the back. Everyone stopped talking to look at him.

He coughed a few more times and then waved his hand. "I'm fine, really. Wrong pipe. I'm good."

I could see his embarrassment, it was almost as great as mine. He looked at me and gave me his crooked little smile. I knew he was picturing me dressed up like fucking Miss America and loving every second of it, knowing how I would have rather died than be in any pageant.

"Edward, is the wine to your liking?" Mr. Hale jumped in.

"It's-" Edward started but wasn't allowed to finish.

"Edward likes any kind of wine. He doesn't have a very discriminating palate. Whatever makes him feel tipsy at the end of the night is right by him," his father interrupted.

I saw Edward's face drop and could feel the shame his father's words tried to inflict.

"Now, what is it that you do, Edward? Emmett said you work in Chicago, but he didn't tell me what you do out there." Mr. Hale decided it was a good idea to focus on Edward. I sensed that he was wrong.

"Edward doesn't really believe in work, Howard. He makes some money here and there shooting pictures for those tabloid magazines. But honest work has always been Emmett's strong suit, not Edward's," Mr. Cullen answered for him.

Now that was low. I could see Edward's jaw tighten and his fist clench.

"Actually, I've seen some of Edward's work. I went to his show at a very well known gallery right in the heart of the Art District in Chicago. He has real talent as a photographer." I could help the words coming out of my mouth. I had thrown the paparazzi comment at him earlier, but I knew how much he loathed that kind of work. I knew that serious photography was his real passion. It surprised me to hear his father demean that part of him.

Esme lit up. "You saw Edward's work? Honey, I didn't know you had a gallery show."

Edward looked at me, his green eyes thankful. "I did have a show, a few months back. It was great. It's actually where I met Bella."

Mrs. Hale put her hand on my shoulder. "How wonderful! Did Emmett hook you two up in Chicago?"

"No actually. We never realized we even had him in common. I didn't even know Emmett had a brother..." that sounded bad "...in Chicago," I added.

"We were both surprised to see each other here this afternoon," Edward said, looking at me with that face that made me want to crawl across the table and kiss him. I wanted to wrap myself around him and have him put his mouth on my neck and his hands on my body.

Control, I needed to get control. _Breathe, Bella, breathe._

Someone entered the room, and Mr. Hale's attention was immediately shifted. "Royce!" he called from the opposite end of the room.

Royce King was Mr. Hale's right hand man. He ran the day-to-day operations at Hale Tower. He was the son Mr. Hale never had. Royce had also been in love with Rosalie since the day they met. Mr. Hale had been ecstatic when they started dating and was sure Royce would be family some day. Rose wasn't in love with him the way he was in love with her, though. Royce loved money. He loved it almost as much as he loved her. Rosalie grew up in a home with a man that loved money; she was not going to allow herself to become her mother. She planned to fall in love with a man who wanted to make the world better, not one who just wanted to buy a better world. Emmett was definitely that man.

"I invited Royce to join us, I hope you don't mind. He's practically family, and he can explain all the details better than anyone, except maybe you, Alice." Mr. Hale smiled down to that end of the table.

"Sorry I'm late. I had some things to handle, and I just couldn't break free. I hope you're all enjoying things so far. Rosalie, you look lovely tonight." He nodded in her direction as he sat down at the opposite end of the table from Mr. Hale. "Emmett, good to see you again."

_Yeah, right._ Royce couldn't be more jealous of another living person other than Emmett.

Rosalie's face turned the slightest shade of pink, but she pulled that shit together quick. I felt bad for her but not that bad. At least I was no longer the only one stuck in a room with two guys who had seen me naked.

Dinner moved along. We ordered, ate, talked about the wedding and reception. Alice had outdone herself. This was going to be the biggest wedding of her career. It was going to be the talk of Seattle for years to come. There were already wedding magazines ready and waiting to do features on it.

Around seven-thirty, Mike's phone went off. He excused himself. Mrs. Hale offered to take Esme and Edward's asshole father on a tour of the hotel to show them where everything would be taking place. Alice agreed to go with, as did Emmett and Rosalie.

"I think I am going to have to call it a night after such a long day of traveling, you know." I loved having an excuse, too bad it wouldn't work every night.

I hugged my friends and the Hales. When we moved out the dining room, Esme gave me a little hug as well.

"I think I'm going to pass on the tour, too. I'll see you all in the morning." Edward stepped out of the circle of family and friends and joined me.

We said our good nights and headed towards the elevators. Neither one of us spoke until we were alone in the elevator.

"Well, your mother is very sweet," I said, not looking at him but focusing all of my attention on the little light up numbers.

"My mother is so, so sweet," he agreed, keeping his eyes also glued to the numbers.

"I can see why Daddy Warbucks became a fantasy father figure," I added.

"Yeah, my father is a peach," he answered sarcastically. "Thank you for what you said, by the way. You didn't have to do that. So, thank you." The sincerity in his voice made my heart skip.

"No problem. I mean, I wasn't lying. You are very talented." I shot a quick glance his way. Seeing Edward in a white dress shirt with and black suit coat and a five o'clock shadow could almost induce orgasms. Throw in the crooked grin and I pretty much needed CPR.

No elevator was fast enough to get me away from this man. I needed to get away from him before I did something I would regret, like punch him or kiss him. Both would be very bad.


	7. Chapter 6 Clearing the Air

EPOV

As soon as we stepped into the elevator, my brain turned to mush. I couldn't even remember what floor my room was on. I waited for her to push the button for her floor and then hit one of the numbers above it so I could ride the whole way with her. I wished I had the balls to stop this elevator and just take her right here. Bella had this power over me. This power that usually involved me wanting to take off all of her clothes. She had stood up for me at dinner. She tried to make me look good in front of my father, even though that was impossible. But God bless her for trying. It made me want to show my appreciation not just in words, but I went with only words anyway.

After our brief exchange, she went back to avoiding eye contact so I played along. I watched the numbers above the door light up in order. I saw her stealing glances, so I stole one back. She had a really red face, but she wasn't blushing, it was more like she was flushed. I looked at her again, and she turned to look at me at the same time. Our eyes connected. I wanted to speak, but I couldn't make the air move in my lungs.

"What?" she asked defensively.

"Nothing. What?" I shrugged.

"I'm still mad at you. I am very mad at you." She was mumbling, and I quirked an eyebrow.

"What are you so mad about? I played along, nobody knows about _us_. I didn't tell Emmett we, you know, dated or whatever."

She was so flustered. It was pretty cute. She would hate it if I said it out loud, but she was so cute when she was mad.

"How did you know about Jake?"

"I didn't." I wasn't lying, I didn't know who the hell Jake was. I only knew that he threatened my life and made out with her in the hallway of her apartment.

"Why did you say his name?"

"Why does it bother you so much?" Obviously, I was missing something. Everyone's reaction to this guy's name had been weird.

"Don't answer my question with a question. You know I hate that. Why did you say his name in front of everyone this afternoon?"

**_Bing!_** The elevator doors opened to her floor. She looked out into the hallway but didn't move from the elevator. The doors closed.

"Ah, that was your floor." For some reason stating the obvious was all I was capable of doing at the moment.

"Well, I'm not finished with you yet. You're going to answer my questions even if I have to follow you to your room," she answered, all tough and shit. God, that was such a turn on.

**_Bing!_** The elevator doors open again. Except, shit, this wasn't really my floor. I stood still and the doors closed.

"Ah, that was your floor," she mocked me.

I sighed and reached into my back pocket, pulling out my key card. Yeah, I was actually on the floor below her. I pressed the correct floor button.

"That wasn't your floor?" She was good at stating the obvious as well.

"I had a few glasses of wine, I forgot what room I was in." I was not going to admit the effect she had on me.

"Why won't you answer my question?" She was getting frustrated.

"Fine. Yes." There was a long pause.

She shook her head and put her hands up. "Yes what? That doesn't answer my question!"

"Yes, you can come to my room."

_**Bing!**_ The doors opened to my floor. This time, I stepped out. She put her hand out to keep the door open and exited the elevator as well. Now she was losing that cute mad look and giving off a more extremely pissed off, I-will-beat-you-down kind of look. I walked towards my room with her following right behind me. I unlocked the door and held it open so she could walk in first. She huffed past me and stood in front of the bed with her arms crossed in front of her.

"Why did you say Jake's name?"

I was messing with her, but I was still more than a little mad at her. I was an asshole in all this, absolutely, but she had been the one living a lie. After she took off that morning, lying to me about Jake calling her, I sat there thinking about it all day. I thought about the way he said she was his, the way she ran after reading his messages on her phone. She had been caught cheating on her boyfriend, except I was not the boyfriend. I was the one she was cheating with. That was the conclusion I drew.

I waited until she was almost off work and called her. I pretended everything was fine and asked her if she was coming back over. She was quick to cut me off and let me know that she couldn't see me that night. She had to run some errands and finish up some paperwork at home. The way she said it sounded wrong, like a lie. So, I waited until I knew she was off work and went to her apartment. I figured if she was telling the truth, the worst thing that could happen would be I'd distract her from her paperwork by doing that thing with my tongue on her neck. I walked up at the same moment someone from her building was walking out, so I grabbed the door. I didn't have to buzz her to let me in; I could knock on her door and surprise her. I walked up the stairs, thinking about how stupid I was for doubting her, how I probably was making more out of this guy than I needed to when I heard them.

"Jake," she sounded breathless.

"I love you Bella, and I know we will always be together." It was the voice I heard on the phone that morning.

I crept up a couple more steps until I could see her hallway. Jake was a pretty big dude. He was way over six and a half feet tall. He had her face his hands and was kissing her mouth. That was all I needed to see. I backed out of there as fast as my feet would take me. I had been a fool. She made me her fool. If she wanted a fool, I could be a fool. That's what I did the next night. I played my part beautifully, and we hadn't seen each other since then - until today.

"I said Jake's name because I know, Bella."

"You know what?" Her curiosity was piqued. She unfolded her arms.

"I know that you lied. I know that when you ran out that last morning, you lied about those calls being from work. Okay? I answered your phone, I talked to Jake." It was time to clear the air.

"You talked to Jake?" Her eyes were wide, and she looked like she was unraveling.

"Well, kind of, if you can call him telling me he was going to kill me for being with his girl talking, but what does it matter? I mean, that night, I saw you. I saw you with my own two eyes. His hands on you, his mouth on you, him telling you he loved you and you would always be together. I saw it. I heard it. No reason to carry on the charade. You don't have to pretend anymore."

Now I folded my arms in front of me. There was my answer to all her stupid ass questions. Only now she looked like she was going to cry. That was not what I was expecting. Bella's inner strength didn't allow her to cry. She told me after her dad died, she gave up crying. She was breathing heavy and staring at me. It was getting a little unnerving.

All the sudden she was in motion. At first, I thought she was coming to kick my ass, but she just pushed past me and out the door. So much for clearing the air. She got her answers, and I got nothing.


	8. Chapter 7 Crying

Chapter 7 - Crying

BPOV

I was running. I was running to the elevator because he couldn't see me like this. I was fucking crying. I was crying because he had been there. He was there, but he didn't know what he was seeing. Edward thought I wanted Jake that night. He thought I had betrayed him. If he had shown up just one minute later, he would have seen something very different. Everything was beginning to make sense.

I remembered coming out of the shower that morning and messing with Edward's head a little. When he told me about my phone messages, I assumed it had to do with work. I was wrong.

There were three texts from Jake. The first one said, _I know you didn't come home last night. _The second one said, _I will find you, even if you don't come home._ The last one said, _I will kill anyone who thinks they can take you away from me. _I could see that I had two voicemails, but I didn't need to listen to them to know they were also from Jake.

All I could think was I needed to get away from Edward. If Jake found him with me, he might hurt him, and I would not allow that to happen. So, I left in a hurry and went to my apartment. No one was there, but there was one red rose sitting outside on my doormat in the hall. He had been there. He had found me.

I got ready for work and tried to stay in control, keep one step ahead. I needed to stay away from Edward until I found out where Jake was. I needed to protect him. I figured Jake would not seek me out at work, not when I was surround by other police officers. However, when I left the station to follow up on a case, I felt exposed. I caught myself looking over my shoulder, something I hadn't done since I left Seattle. I could feel eyes on me. I couldn't see them, but I could feel them. I hated that feeling. Edward called me before I got off work. He wanted me to come over, but it was too risky. Jake would follow me there. He would hurt Edward or worse. I made up a lame excuse. I had mistakenly believed I fooled him.

I went home, but as soon as I turned up the stairs, I could see him standing outside my door. Jake was humongous. He made Emmett look small. When we first got together, I loved that he was big and strong. My dad had died and I wanted someone to hold me and take care of me. Jake wanted to fulfill that role so desperately. Now, his size just made me think about how easy it was for him to hurt me. But I was done being hurt by him. I cautiously approached him, my hand resting on the glock on my hip.

"What are you doing here, Jake?"

"This is all getting ridiculous, Bella. I talked to your mother and she told me where to find you. I can't stay away from you. I need you and I know you need me." He was standing still, and I kept out of his reach with the stairs to my back, in case I needed to escape.

My stupid drunk mother. My father must have been rolling over in his grave.

"You know you aren't allowed to be here, Jake. I have a restraining order. You are not supposed to be near me. You know this. We broke up. I left. I am not coming back. I need you to go." I tried to keep my voice controlled, even though I could feel my heart pounding in my chest.

"Bella, I swear I will never hurt you again. You know me. You know that the only thing I want to do is take care of you. I can't live without you, I can't." He began to cry. This giant man sobbing like a baby in front of me.

But Jake had cried for me before. He cried after every time he hurt me. The last time he cried was when Emmett and Eric, my old partner, pulled him off of me in the parking lot of the restaurant where we were celebrating Emmett and Rosalie's engagement. He had followed me there and went into a rage when Mike showed up, convinced that Mike and I were having a secret love affair. That was when I couldn't hide my problem from my friends anymore. The next morning Emmett forced me to get the restraining order.

"I've heard this all before, Jake. I'm done. You need to go or I will call the police."

He stayed very still. Too still. I contemplated what I should do. I should have run. I should have gotten out of there and called the station. But I foolishly took a step forward, towards my apartment door. I had underestimated the length of his grasp and how quickly he could move.

"Jake," I breathed, the air forced out of my lungs as he pushed me up against the wall.

"I love you Bella, and I know we'll always be together." He grabbed my face hard in his hands and bumped my head against the wall as his lips crashed into mine. He kissed me so hard he was smashing my lips against my teeth.

I decided to go limp, hoping that wouldn't make him madder. He finally backed off and grabbed my upper arms. He started shaking me and yelling. He grabbed me by my neck in a rage. That's when I snapped. I was not going to be his victim any more. I kneed him in the groin, and he released me. With him bent over, I pushed down on his head and kneed him in the nose. When he snapped up in surprise, I balled up my fist and, with every ounce of power I had, I punched him and broke his jaw. He fell over, and I unholstered my weapon. Trying not to shake, I pointed my gun at him and called 911. I stood there in silence until patrol showed up. When they saw all five foot five of me and all six foot six if him, looking much worse for wear, they couldn't help but be amused. I was anything but amused.

After I got everything settled at the station, I went home. I thought about going to Edward's, but I was sure I would freak him out or scare him away. Act normal, I told myself. Get up, go to work, forget about what happened. All day I thought about it, though. I was not in control, and it was so frustrating. I called Edward when I got done with work. I told him I really wanted to see him, that I needed to talk to him about something in person. I was going to come clean about everything - about Jake, the abuse, the stalking. I was going to let him take care of me because I believed he would really do it. He told me not to come over until ten, he had some business to take care of, which was the first red flag, but I was so messed up I didn't pick up on his tone and the odd response. I knew now he thought I was going to tell him I was involved with someone else. That could be the only reason why when I showed up right at ten, he opened the door looking wasted with two girls in various stages of undress.

"Bella, oh, is it ten already? Shit, come in. We're playing strip poker. Do you want to join us? These two aren't very good though. You might never get to take anything off."

My heart broke right then. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't speak. I just left. I never called him and he never called me. It just ended in that one moment, the moment I needed him the most. I decided I could never need anyone again.

I knew now that the whole thing had been a huge misunderstanding. He had seen something out of context, he had set out to hurt me before I hurt him. I was trying to protect him and instead all my secrets and lies drove us apart.

I stood in the elevator. I didn't even press a button to go anywhere. I just let the doors close and stood there, trying to pull myself together. Maybe Edward did love me. Maybe he was who I originally thought he was. I took some deep breaths, then pushed the button that would take me back to Edward's floor. Before I got there, the doors opened in the lobby. Royce stepped in the elevator. He reeked of cigarette smoke, another thing that turned Rosalie off.

"Bella," he said politely as he took a spot next to me.

I wiped my face making sure there was no evidence of my weakness from a few moments ago.

"Royce." I nodded once. We stood in awkward silence for a little bit.

"I'm sure Rose is happy to have you back in town for a little bit," he said, breaking that silence.

I smiled, Royce and I never got along. We just are very different people. He always hated it when Rosalie and I would get together. I was sure he wished I moved away while they were dating. He probably thought if there was no me, there'd be no Emmett.

"Well, you know Rose, she seems to be _so_ happy all the time. It's hard to tell if it really has anything to do with me."

I could be such a bitch. He shoved his hands in his pockets and began bouncing on the balls of his feet. He knew better than to snap back at me. He would never want Rosalie to hear he insulted me in any way. The elevator stopped at Edward's floor. I stepped out, noticing Royce hadn't pushed a button but didn't exit with me.

"Goodnight Bella," he said with all the politeness he could manage.

"Goodnight," I said as the doors closed.

I walked slowly down the hall towards Edward's room. I didn't know what I was going to say exactly, but I knew I needed to see him and tell my side of the story. I knocked on the door, and he took his time. The door finally opened, but he said nothing. I said nothing. We stared at each other for a moment. Then, I just reacted. I flung my arms around his neck and buried my face into his chest. I couldn't stop the hot, wet tears from coming again. He slowly wrapped his arms around me and held me for a minute without saying anything, just what I needed.


	9. Chapter 8 Best Day Ever

EPOV

I lay in bed, holding her naked body against mine, happier than I had been in a very long time. I ran my fingers through her soft hair, wanting to stay here forever. She had come back last night, cried on my shoulder, told me everything. I had never been so pissed at myself. If I had just told her about the phone call, that asshole would never have been able to hurt her again. There were so many things I regretted, so many things had I done differently would have saved us all this time apart. If I hadn't answered the phone that morning and fueled his rage, none of this would have happened. If I had let her come to me and explain instead of using those stupid girls to hurt her, we would have been fine.

But we were together now. I kissed the top of her head, and she squeezed me tighter. She moved her leg between mine, and we lay there tangled up in each other. I wasn't sure we would ever be getting out this of bed. Maybe we would for the wedding, but that was it.

Bella wouldn't let me take any blame last night. She was dead set on keeping that all to herself. She was mad at herself for not telling me the truth when she saw the messages, for lying on the phone, for not telling me everything before Jake even came to Chicago. She did not need to apologize, though. Not to me. Ever.

She lifted her face off my chest, and our lips came together soft and warm. She pulled one of her incredibly smooth legs up and over the spot that was going to make it very difficult for me to not do things to her, things we very much enjoyed all night long.

"Good morning, Mr. Cullen," she purred, getting the reaction she wanted from me.

"Detective Swan, you're a naughty little thing." I rolled over on top of her, and she wrapped her legs around my waist. We kissed and I ran my tongue down her neck and slid it along her collarbone. She made the sexiest noise when I did that. I was ready to go when her phone rang.

"You and that phone," I pouted, rolling off her, knowing she couldn't ignore it. She got up and grabbed it out of her bag.

"It's Emmett." She looked at it, surprised.

My fucking brother was a dead man. He wasn't getting any this week because Rosalie moved into the hotel. She decided that they should live separately the week before the wedding so it would make their honeymoon _special_. I was sure sex with Rosalie was always _special_, but whatever. Just because he had to be celibate, didn't mean he could ruin my fun. OK, he had no idea I was having fun, but I needed to be mad at someone.

"No, I'm not in my room. Sorry, Em. I'm fine." She smiled at me.

Yeah, we were both better than fine until he called.

She continued, winking at me. "It's a long story. No, I haven't talked to her or seen her since dinner last night. Maybe she's in the shower or something... Oh, I don't know. You want me to go up there? Okay. I'll call you back." She closed her phone and stood there with a perplexed look on her face.

"Can you come back and finish what you started or did my asshole brother just ruin my morning?" I was hoping she would say she could come back to bed, but I could see she was needed elsewhere.

She started putting on her clothes.

_Damn Emmett._

"Rosalie's not answering her phone. Emmett's been calling her all morning, and she isn't answering her cell or the room phone. Rose never goes anywhere without her phone," Bella explained, pulling on her pants, now fully dressed.

_Damn Rosalie._

Bella walked over to the phone and dialed what I assumed was Rosalie's room. She hung up after a letting it ring for a minute.

"Do you want me to come with you to look for her?" I offered, getting out of bed and looking around for my boxers.

Bella smiled, pushing me on the bed. She straddled me and slowly brushed her lips over mine and then down my neck and back up by my ear.

"You stay here. After I find her, I'll be sure to find you to finish what I started," she whispered into my ear. I could feel my whole body tingling. I grabbed her face and kissed her. Our tongues rolled around each other. She pulled away and walked towards the door.

_Damn Bella._

She closed the door, and I flopped back on the bed, trying to enjoy the tingling that was fading fast. When it was all gone, I decided to take a shower. Yesterday was the craziest day of my life. Yet, for once in my life, things worked out in my favor. This was not the luck I was used to. I was in love with someone who was smart and gorgeous and _perfect_. To top it off, she was maybe in love with me, too. She knew Emmett and still was falling in love with me. She liked Emmett but was loving me. Today was a good day. Today was a great day. Today was the best day of my life.

I got dressed and grabbed my camera bag, taking out my camera. I turned it on and started looking through the photos saved on my memory card. There was the picture from yesterday, Bella and her friends in the lobby. The completely stunned look on her face was priceless. She still looked beautiful. I hit the button to go back further. I had kept all the pictures of her on my card. Pictures of her from when we were together. She was my favorite subject a few months ago. I never deleted them, even after things got all messed up. I would look at them every now and then just to punish myself. Looking at them, I was relieved I was such a masochist. I could look at them now and feel like the luckiest bastard alive.

The ringing room phone pulled me from my thoughts of Bella. I answered it and could tell immediately Bella was not happy.

"Edward, I need you to meet me at the elevators. Bring your camera." I could hear the anxiety in her voice.

"What's the matter?"

"Just go to the elevators. I'll explain everything. Don't forget your camera." She hung up and I stood there confused. I put my camera back in the bag and slung it over my shoulder. Something told me my best day ever was getting screwed.


	10. Chapter 9 Missing

BPOV

I left Edward's room, trying desperately to hold on to the absolute bliss I felt lying in his arms a few minutes ago. But Emmett's phone call made me feel, I don't know, _off_. He had called my room phone, and of course, I didn't answer. I had freaked him out. Between all the trouble he was having getting Rosalie on the phone and hearing Jake's name yesterday, he was on edge. I called Rosalie's cell and got her voicemail. I got in the elevator and realized I couldn't get up to the Presidential Suite without a special elevator key. I pressed the button to take me to the lobby instead.

I immediately went to the front desk, and there was the former bane of my existence, Jessica. We were friends now, I told myself, so I put on a smile.

"Hi, I need to get up to Ms. Hale's room. We're having a problem getting a hold of her, and I wanted to go up there and check on her. Could I get the key to the elevator?" My fingers nervously tapped on the granite counter between us.

"Oh, well. Um, I really am not allowed to give that out to anyone." She looked a little fearful of not giving me what I wanted but didn't appear to be moving in the direction of getting the damn key either.

"Yeah, I know, but she's my friend. I am pretty sure she would have no issue with you letting me get up there to see her." I tried to keep smiling, but I wasn't going to be able to keep it up much longer.

"Um, I'm sure that's true, but I really can't do it. Sorry. If Ms. Hale calls the front desk and says it's fine, then I could do it." The Bane was back.

"You see that would be _great_. But if I could get Ms. Hale on the phone so she could call _you_, I wouldn't need to go up there and check to make sure she is okay because she would be on the phone, telling me she's okay." My smile was fading fast.

"I, I understand that. But..." The Bane was starting to crumble, but I still didn't have the key.

"Get me Royce," I huffed. The Bane stared at me wide eyed. "Go get me Royce, Royce King. Go!" I was done smiling.

She stepped back and went through a door behind her. About two minutes later, out walked the Bane with Royce following. Royce walked up to me and gave me a quick once over. I looked down and realized I was wearing the exact same outfit from last night, the outfit he saw me wearing at dinner and when I got off the elevator to go to Edward's room. I could see by his smug smile that he noticed.

"Bella, I should have known. What seems to be the problem?"

"Emmett and I are having some trouble getting Rose on her phone. I told him I would go up and check on her, but I need the elevator key to get on that floor." I found myself messing with the sloppy ponytail I had made on the way down here. I was sure I looked like a disaster.

"Oh, you were with Emmett this morning?" He looked at my shirt again, and I knew what he was trying to insinuate.

"He called me, after he called Rose, like he does every morning when he hasn't had the pleasure of her company in bed the night before. But that won't be an issue much longer, will it?" I can rub shit in, too.

"Well, why don't we just call the room?" He picked up the phone and dialed.

"Yeah, we did that," I said, folding my hands together on the counter. Was I an idiot or something and didn't think to call her room?

"She's not answering, maybe she's not there." Royce cocked his head as he set the receiver down.

"Yeah, but she's not answering her cell either, so I would really like to go and check." _Don't make me hurt you Royce, no wait, maybe let me hurt you_, I thought to myself.

"Maybe she wants some privacy and isn't answering calls from people she doesn't want to talk to right now."

_Really?_ He was really going to piss me off like this? He did want me to hurt him. I leaned over the counter and spoke just loud enough so both Royce and The Bane could hear me.

"Royce, if you don't give me the fucking key, I will climb over this counter and show this young lady next to you what a pussy you really are." I stepped back from the counter and smiled as sweetly as I could at The Bane who looked like she might wet herself.

Royce cleared his throat. "Nice, Bella. How very ladylike of you. I always wondered how Rosalie could ever relate to someone like you."

"Key," I demanded, holding my hand out.

"I will take you up there myself, how about that? Then no one is breaking any rules." He opened a drawer and pulled out a ring of keys. He walked around the counter and joined me at elevator.

Once we got in, he couldn't stop himself, I guess he really did want me to hurt him. "Maybe she's getting cold feet. Maybe she realized Mr. Perfect isn't so perfect."

"Royce, shut your face. Really. Just shut it." We didn't talk again the rest of the ride to the top floor.

The top floor was split into two immense suites. When Rosalie turned sixteen, we had a huge party at hotel and a handful of girls got to stay in the Presidential Suite with Rosalie for the night while her parents stayed in the Executive Suite on the opposite side of the hall. A penthouse all to ourselves; it was over the top and one of the best memories I had from high school.

Now, I stood outside the door feeling uneasy. I knock and waited. No answer. I called her cell and could hear it ringing from the other side of the door. Her voicemail picked up. Something was not right. Rosalie didn't go anywhere without her phone. The woman took her phone everywhere. Something was absolutely wrong.

"Open the door," I said to Royce.

He looked at me but didn't move.

"Open the fucking door, Royce!" My patience was wearing thin.

"You have no authority over me, Bella. I am not just going to open the door because you demand it." He didn't try to hide his dislike for me anymore.

"Do you want to explain to Mr. Hale why we stood outside Rosalie's door while she lie dying inside with a cracked skull after falling in the shower or some shit like that? Something is wrong, Royce. Open the fucking door."

He thought about it for a minute and then realized that as soon as I went to Mr. Hale I was going to get my way, and he would look bad. He fumbled through his pockets and pulled out a key card that must open all the doors in the hotel, a master key of sorts. He unlocked the door and held it open motioning for me to go in.

I knew right away that something was more than wrong. The table next to the door was knocked over. Rosalie's phone was on the floor by the door, like she had dropped it there. I cursed myself for not having my gun, but I never thought in a million years I would be walking into a crime scene. I motioned to Royce to stay back and walked towards the large great room. Nothing looked out of place there. I made my way deeper into the suite and saw nothing. No other signs of a struggle but more importantly, no sign of Rosalie. I started to turn and noticed Royce behind me.

"Didn't I tell you to stay out there?" I whispered.

"You didn't _tell_ me anything. Like I said before, you have no authority over me."

Stubborn ass. I pulled out my phone and called Emmett.

"Emmett, you need to get over here right away. Rose is missing and someone's been in her room."

He didn't even respond, he hung up, and I knew he'd be here momentarily. When I hung up the phone, Royce was back by my side.

"I found this." He held a small tape recorder in his hand.

"Royce, don't fucking touch anything! God!" I tried to pull myself together. I was not used to coming into a non-secured crime scene. I get there after the first responders have taken care of people like Royce. "Where did you find it? Show me, exactly."

He walked me over to the door again and pointed to the floor by the knocked over table. I didn't remember seeing it there, but I wasn't in full detective mode then. I told him to press play and that was the moment everything changed.


	11. Chapter 10 Ransom

**A/N: The focus is shifting to finding Rosalie but Bella and Edward still have some issues. Things are going to get messier. Lots of new characters will be popping up soon... Thanks for the reviews and follows!  
**

EPOV

I nervously shifted my weight from foot to foot as I waited for Bella by the elevators. Finally, the doors on the left opened up. Inside was Bella, Emmett, and that guy that showed up late to the dinner last night, Roy or something like that. I smiled at the sight of my lovely lady, but that smile faded fast when I caught sight of the look on my brother's face. He was beyond distraught. I had never seen Emmett so upset.

"What the hell is going on?" I stepped in the elevator.

Emmett couldn't even speak, he just grabbed me and hugged me. Now, I was fucking freaked out.

"What the hell is going on?" I asked Bella, eyes wide, holding my now sobbing brother.

"Someone took Rosalie," she answered, then she bit her lip, like she was holding back some tears herself. She looked so fucking sad, I wanted to let go of Emmett and grab her up and tell her it would all be okay, but I wasn't going anywhere trapped in Emmett's grip.

"What does that mean, someone took her?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

Emmett let me go and wiped his face with his hands. "Someone abducted her, Edward. Some piece of shit got into her room and took her last night."

I felt like I was in the middle of a really bad joke. Someone abducted Rosalie? How did that happen?

"I need you to come take some pictures. Whatever I tell you to take a picture of, you take a picture of, okay?" Bella was serious. This was no joke.

"Whatever you need me to do." I stood there, looking at the two people that I loved most in the world and feeling helpless. I didn't know what to say to either of them to make this better. They both loved Rosalie, and this was a nightmare. I caught Bella's eye and started to reach for her hand, but she quickly and very discreetly shook her head, cuing me not to go there right now. This probably was not the right time to tell my brother that we were together. The elevator stopped at the very top floor, and we all got out. We stood outside the door while that Roy guy took out a key and opened the door.

"Don't touch anything. Try to not disturb anything as best you can." Bella knew what she was doing, but I felt an enormous amount of pressure not to mess anything up.

"Did you guys call the police?" I asked, feeling stupid as they all looked at each other and then back at me.

"We're not calling the police, just yet," Bella said, looking at Emmett, who didn't look too happy with that answer.

"Can I ask why not?" I looked to Emmett.

"Just do what Bella tells you to do, Edward." Emmett had a tortured look on his face. He stepped away and walked down the long hallway with his hands on his head.

We walked into the suite, and I could see that something happened right by the door. Roy didn't follow us in, and Bella went right into work.

"Take a bunch of the table and everything around it. Take close ups of everything that fell off or looks like it fell off the table. Get it from a couple angles so you can see it in reference to the door and to the rest of the entryway."

I started shooting. I had a million thoughts running through my head and different emotions hitting me all at once. My curiosity was killing me, but my desire to hug her was becoming overwhelming. After I finished, I ran my fingers through my hair. I turned to look at Bella. I had never seen her look the way she looked right now. I had seen her sad, mad, and extremely pissed off, but this was worse. It was like there was no emotion on her face. She was a blank slate.

"Baby, what the hell is going on? Are you okay?" I started towards her again, but she stepped away.

"I'm fine. I need you to come through here and take pictures in the living room." She started walking towards this enormous room that had floor to ceiling windows on the far wall with doors leading to a balcony. There was a fireplace on one wall and two huge couches and two chairs in the middle of the room. The ceiling and all the moulding were very ornate. The room was decorated very European, Italian maybe, my mother would know. The marble floors that started in the foyer carried over into the living room, but a huge rug covered most of the space. Bella walked me over to the giant coffee table that sat in the middle of the seating area.

"I need shots of what's on the table and all around the seating area," she said, moving towards the balcony. There were a couple wedding magazines on the table and some other decorative pieces. Nothing out of the ordinary. I did as she said. I followed her to the wall of windows. She grabbed a fireplace poker and used it to open the door. We walked out on the balcony, and it was a breathtaking view. I wished I had come up here for different reasons, so I could have taken very different kinds of pictures.

"Take pictures of the whole balcony area," she ordered, turning her back to me and pressing up against the railing. There were two giant planters in the corner filled with beautiful greenery and flowers. Next to that, there were a couple chairs and a small table. I took a dozen or so pictures, figuring I should get as many as possible.

Bella looked out over downtown Seattle. I could imagine she was trying to figure out where her friend was out there. Without thinking I snapped a picture of her. Bella looked painfully stoic. I wanted to rewind time and go back just a couple hours when she was sleeping peacefully in my arms, her body so relaxed, all the features of her face soft, her lips curved upward while sweet dreams ran through her head. Now she was hard, rigid, her eyes cold, her lips in a tight, straight line. I walked up behind her and put my hand on her shoulder. She turned out of my grasp and started walking towards the door. I stepped in front of her.

"Don't you shut me out. That was what got us in trouble the last time. Talk to me. Why aren't we calling the police. What I am taking pictures for?"

"Edward, I have to stay focused. They're all depending on me." Finally some emotion in her voice and eyes.

"Staying focused is one thing, shutting yourself off is another." I put my hand on her face. I wanted to hold her so badly.

"They're holding her ransom. They said they'll do terrible things to her if we call the police. I am the one who has to find her. I'm the only one who can find her." She took my hand from her face and leaned against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her and kissed the top of her head.

"Emmett doesn't agree with not calling the police, does he?" My brother was a by the book kind of guy. I knew that all too well. He only covered for me.

She lifted her head and nodded. "He thinks we should call it in, and I don't really disagree. They can do a lot more than I can on my own. They have more resources and can run fingerprints. But Mr. Hale listened to the ransom message and said no way. He forbid us from calling."

"He forbid you?" I knew the guy was rich, but could he forbid two grown adults from calling the police? I didn't get it.

"You need to listen to something." She took my hand and led me back into the living room and to the front door. She knelt down and picked up a tape recorder that was on the floor and pressed play.

A distorted voice came from the player that sounded like those guys from the movie Scream. "Do what you are told and Rosalie will be released unharmed. If you call the police we will scar her face permanently. Any attempt to fuck with us will result in her not coming home in the perfect state she is currently in, if at all. We want one thing, the Tereschenko Diamond. You will be contacted soon with information regarding where to deliver the necklace. If it is delivered on time to a certain location, Rosalie will be released unharmed. Again, do not try and contact the police. You are being watched carefully, and we will know if you disobey. It would be a shame for such beautiful girl to be disfigured the rest of her life. If she gets a life."

Bella shut it off and rewound it. She set it back where she found it.

"What the hell is a Terra-whatever-the-shit-ko Diamond?" I didn't have any idea what all this was about.

"Rosalie's father bought her a necklace for the wedding at some auction. It's got some five million dollar blue diamond in it. He planned to let her wear it, her something blue, and then donate it to some museum or something," Bella explained. I knew these people were rich, but I didn't know they were that kind of rich.

"So, we aren't calling the police because this guy is going to disfigure her or something? It's bullshit that he's watching us." I had seen a lot of movies. The bad guys were never really that omniscient.

"Well, they know the Hales well enough to know that is the one thing they won't risk. Mrs. Hale would rather they killed Rose than scarred her. These people want the necklace, and they knew Mr. Hale would only give it up for one reason."

The door opened and Emmett, the Hales, and that Roy guy walked in.

"Oh, Bella! Please tell me we're going to get her back! Please tell me she isn't going to be scarred!" Mrs. Hale flung herself at Bella. I saw what Bella meant. Not that I wanted anything to happen to Rose's face, but this seemed crazy.

We walked back into the living room for a group meeting. I wasn't sure I should be involved but stood behind the couch Emmett sat on. No one seemed to care I was a part of this fiasco. Mr. Hale looked at Bella and began. I knew right away that I was in the middle of some crazy shit.


	12. Chapter 11 No Police

BPOV

I loved Rosalie. I loved her like a sister. She and Emmett were two of the best people I knew in the entire world. Her parents, on the other hand, were rich snobs, who drove me insane. Someone had taken Rose. Someone found a way into her penthouse and took her. No one saw them, no one reported anything out the ordinary, and they knew exactly what they want. Someone inside Mr. Hale's organization was a part of this. He had to know that. What was worse, the Hales thought they could just do what these people were asking and they'd just hand Rose back over. It didn't work like that. Once they saw that the Hales would give them what they wanted, they would ask for more and more, all at Rosalie's expense.

As soon as Mr. Hale started talking, I knew Emmett and I were going to be fighting a losing battle. "So, we're going to wait until they tell us where to drop off the necklace, and then how long should we wait for Rosalie to be returned do you think, Bella?"

I shook my head. "I don't know if it's going to be that simple, Mr. Hale. Once these guys know you're willing to play by their rules and give them what they want without batting an eye, they are going to come back for more. I think we need to find them. I think we need to get the police in here."

"Absolutely not! Didn't you hear what they would do to her? She cannot come home scarred, Bella. I will not let that happen to my Rose. I won't!" Mrs. Hale screamed from her seat next to her husband. I noticed in that moment how perfect she looked. Her hair, her makeup, all done up like she was going somewhere important. You would never know that she had been woken up by a phone call from me, telling her her daughter had been taken in the night. Her priorities amazed me.

Emmett shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and his head dropped into his hands. I could see how this was tearing him apart. I knew he wanted to call the police as badly as I did, but the thought of someone doing anything to Rose was unimaginable. I knew he couldn't care less about how she would look; it was more the pain and suffering she might have to endure. Just the thought of it made him sick.

"I could call in guys that I know. Friends of mine. It would be very quiet. No one would have to know." I tried to reassure her.

"They could find out, Isabella! How could you even think about risking it? Because it's not your face on the line?" Mrs. Hale was furious. I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to remind myself not to lash out at the woman who's daughter was missing. I would give anything to reverse time and be back in bed with Edward, completely unaware of all of this shit.

"Well, can we at least agree on letting Bella investigate? Bella is the best detective I know. Maybe she can find them or her." Emmett's voice cracked at the mention of Rosalie. His faith in me was flattering, but to be quite honest, it was maybe a little misplaced. How the hell was I going to find Rosalie without any help from the police? With no resources, no crime scene investigators, no forensics, no warrants, nothing.

"That sounds like a good idea. Bella whatever you need, it's yours. Royce will help with anything you need." Mr. Hale had wanted this all along.

"You haven't said anything all morning, Isabella. What have you figured out so far, _Detective_?" Royce asked, feeling a little overconfident with the Hales in the room. The use of my full name irked me.

I took a deep breath, I didn't want to look like I was falling apart, but the truth was I didn't know what I knew. I had some basics, but I needed to talk to Emmett, get a timeline in place. I decided to only share what I had been going over in my head since I first realized what was happening.

"Not much. My first instinct tells me this was an inside job. Someone that works here had to be involved. Someone who had access to this room, who knew how to get out of here undetected. They had to know the Hales fairly well, what would emotionally impact them the most. They knew about the necklace specifically. So, I would think that narrows things down a little."

"Well, the whole city knew about the necklace, darling. There was a full page article in The Times about the wedding, and they even ran a picture of the necklace," Mrs. Hale interjected.

Great, the whole fucking town knew about the obscene gift they had bought for their daughter. Of course, the Hales had publicized the shit out of that. Well, so much for narrowing the suspects down with that information.

"What I need is a list of all employees who were on duty last night and another list of employees who had the night off. I need you, Mr. Hale, to make a list of anyone you can think of that has a grudge against you. Emmett, I think you should do the same. People who had motive and means to try to pull something this big off."

"Great, the assistant DA should have a nice long list of slimy criminals looking to do harm to poor Rosalie," Royce sputtered his venom.

I thought Emmett would give it right back, but it was Edward who spoke, looking at Royce and putting a reassuring hand on his brother's shoulder. "Why don't you stick your comments up your ass where they belong, you son of a bitch."

The Hales looked at him but said nothing.

"Edward, it's fine. He's right. There are plenty of bad guys out there who would love to get to me and would use Rose to do it. But this isn't personal. This is about the money, and we all know I'm not the one here with the money." Emmett kept his eyes on Royce, who slouched back into his chair.

"Emmett's right. This is about the necklace. This is someone who knows the Hales. I don't really think it is connected to the work Emmett does. Someone wanting to get at Emmett would want him to know it was about him but just to be safe..." I didn't want to overlook anything.

"What is Emmett's brother doing here anyways," Mrs. Hale asked, avoiding eye contact with Edward as if he was below her.

"Edward came to help me," I said in his defense. "I had him take some pictures so I can start gathering some evidence together and sort through the clues left behind.

"What clues? They knocked over a table. That's it," Royce muttered from his seat again.

"There are always clues. So far, the clues tell me that whoever took her was waiting for her. They were here for a little while before she arrived last night."

"How do you know that?" Royce was provoking me, and I began to wonder why.

"The magazines on the table," I said matter-of-factly.

"What about the magazines on the table?" he asked, clueless.

"The magazines were askew when we first walked in. Mrs. Hale adjusted them when she walked past them, putting them in a neat stack. She did it automatically, without even thinking about it." I could see the surprise on everyone's face, no one noticed but me. "Rosalie is very much like her mother that way. Things are always orderly. It's a learned behavior she's displayed for as long as I have known her. Rosalie would never have left this penthouse without the magazines piled nicely on the table. Never. She would have done the same thing as her mother, she would have instinctively stacked them neatly." I looked at Edward who's eyebrows shot up. He was impressed but that really wasn't much to go on. "So, whoever did this was comfortable enough and knew they had enough time to sit over here and look through the magazines on the table."

Now Royce had nothing to say. Mrs. Hale stared at the magazines, probably trying to remember putting them in their neat stack.

"We have the right woman on the job. This is know. Royce, whatever Bella needs you get it for her," Mr. Hale said getting up form his seat on the couch. "I will get you a list of people as soon as I can Bella. Sweetheart, let's go home and wait for news."

"You're leaving?" Emmett asked, taken aback by their desire to depart.

"Well, there's nothing for us to do here. The kidnappers may contact us at home next, I don't know. Bella seems to have a handle on things, and Royce can do anything I can do. I have complete faith in him." Mr. Hale nodded at Royce, who perked up at the compliment.

"Thank you, sir. I will do whatever it takes to help. I want Rosalie back safe and sound. Don't you worry, Mrs. Hale." He stood up and offered his hand to help her up from her seat.

What a fucking kiss ass. Even in the middle of all this shit, the guy was still trying to win brownie points. I was sick, thinking I have to rely on him all day.

The Hales left and the other four of us remained in the living room. I decided it was time to send Royce on his way, so I could speak freely. "Royce, I need those lists as soon as possible. Also, are there any security cameras in the elevators, outside the elevators, in the hallway outside this room? Anything?"

"There's the monitor in the panel by the door that links to a camera in the hallway, but there is no tape running. It's purely for the guests to see who is in the hall. No security cameras in the elevators. There are some by the front desk area and security cameras by all the exits."

"Well, that will have to do. I need to see all the exit footage from last night. They left with her, and it can't be that easy to sneak a body out of here. Call me when I can come down and look at it." With that, I sent him on his way.

Emmett still sat on the couch with his head in his hands. Edward had moved to sit next to him and had his hand on his back. I sat down across from the two of them.

"We'll get her back, Em. They aren't going to do anything to her. Then we'll find them and lock them away forever." I felt like I was being reassuring. Yet, there was doubt lingering around us all. What if something happens to her and we had to explain why we didn't report the abduction? What if because we handle this ourselves these guys got away with everything? Even if Rosalie ended up safe, what if we never got these guys because we kept the local police out of it? I would never be able to forgive myself.

"I almost stayed with her last night. It's been miserable at the apartment without her. I almost had her convinced to let me stay. I almost came in here with her. Then we both got texted at the same time, and she said I should go." Emmett was crying again.

He had been right here when the bad guy was in here waiting. He was blaming himself.

"Who texted you?" I asked, knowing all information was important at this stage.

"Mike, something stupid, he thought he left something here, wanted me to check if someone turned it in at the front desk." Mike was famous for losing things. The guy was lucky his head was attached. Another reason we would never have lasted.

"Who texted her?" Edward asked before I could.

Emmett looked up at his brother. "I don't know. She didn't say and I didn't ask. I was too pissed that the calls stopped our make out session long enough for her to remember her little separation plan."

Edward and I both got up at the same time and walked back to the front door. We could find out who called, her cell had been beeping and buzzing all morning. I hadn't touched it yet, not until I had all the pictures taken. Who was our little mystery texter?


	13. Chapter 12 Suspect

EPOV

I was starting to think I was the only one who could hear the annoying phone that was beeping intermittently throughout our conversation. Finally, we had a reason to go look at it and stop the maddening noise. Bella picked it up and began scrolling through the missed calls. I stood behind her, reading over her shoulder. Emmett had called ten times this morning. Bella had called twice. Alice had called once. Nothing Bella wasn't expecting. Then she went into Rosalie's messages. There were five texts from Emmett. My brother had obviously spent the whole morning trying to get ahold of Rosalie, each message more and more panicked. Bella kept scrolling and stopped at one dated yesterday at 9:05 pm.

"Son of a bitch." Bella's hand dropped to her side.

"Who was it?" Emmett called as he made his way over to us.

"Royce." Bella held up the phone to show him.

The text said, _Meet me. You know where._

"He didn't think we were going to check her phone?" I couldn't figure out how stupid this guy was.

"Maybe she didn't respond. Maybe she didn't meet him," Bella said more to Emmett than me. She was trying to make him feel better, but it wasn't working.

"There's only one way to find out." Emmett was out the door before he even finished his sentence. Bella was quick to follow.

"Em, hang on. Let's slow down. Let's think this through. Even if Rosalie went to meet him, we know she was taken from here. Royce didn't have her meet him somewhere and then bring her back here to take her." Bella made a good point, but I had some doubts.

"What if he was meeting her up here? What if her suite was their meeting spot. Maybe that's why she told Emmett to go," I pondered out loud.

Bella looked at me like she wanted to strangle me. "Rose would not meet Royce up here. Plus, after he tried hooking up with her, he masterminded a whole plan to kidnap her for the necklace? It doesn't fit."

"You're getting caught up in defending her honor, Bella. I'm not saying Rosalie was even entertaining the idea of Royce. Maybe he wanted her to think he was trying to hook up with her but all he really wants is the necklace. You said yourself, it had to be an insider. How much more insider does it get than Royce?" I was pretty good at this detective shit. Somebody should give me a badge or something.

Bella backed against the wall and slid down it. She ran her fingers through her hair, pulling out her ponytail.

"I'm telling you, Em. I am too close to this. I can't fucking look at this objectively! I knew this was going to happen." She buried her head in her arms.

"Bells." Emmett took a seat next to her and put his arm around her shoulders. It was his turn to calm her down. She let her head fall into his chest. I have to admit I had to fight back the feelings of jealousy that were washing over me. "You are good at what you do. You can do this. We have to do this for Rose. You and me." Emmett wrapped both arms around her, and I suddenly felt like a major third wheel.

_She's mine, damn it_.

Did I just think that? I sounded like Jake the psycho stalker. That couldn't be good.

Bella took a minute and then regained her composure. "Ok, let's say Royce is behind this. Why? He is on the fast track to being the guy who takes over for Mr. Hale someday. This whole empire will be his. Why would he screw that up over some necklace?"

Good point. Maybe I should turn my badge back in.

"Well, we need to find out if he was the last one to see her or not. I should obviously not be the one who asks him any questions." Emmett released her from his hold and rested his arms on his bent knees.

"Someone needs to talk to Alice and your parents, too. Alice is going to freak out. We need to keep this as contained as possible. Do you think you can handle that side of things?" Bella looked to Emmett. I didn't want to deal with my parents or that chirpy one.

"Okay, so you talk to Royce and then what?"

"Then I'll look at the security video. Once I know if and when he saw her, we can narrow down when I should be looking for them to leave with her. Then I need to come up here again and look around better. If the guy hung out up here for awhile, he could have gotten sloppy, left something for me to find. More than just moved magazines." Bella was back in cop mode.

"What do you want me to do? Please don't send me to talk to my parents. Dad will probably find some way to blame me for this whole fiasco. I don't want to deal with him if I can avoid it, babe." The look on Bella's face made me all too aware that I had slipped up.

"Well, _babe_. You can go back to your room. Don't fucking tease me and call me babe. I'm a fucking mess, I know it." Emmett stood up and punched my shoulder. Thank God my brother was not on his game.

"Um, Edward can come with me. I'm going to need him to take a few pictures once we determine where they left from. I also want some other pictures. He can come with me, since you know, he doesn't want to be around your mom and dad and stuff." Bella stood up and was talking a little faster than normal for her. She was nervous, it was cute. I smiled my crooked smile at her, and she turned away from us so Emmett wouldn't see her blush, but I knew she did. She hit the elevator button.

"Okay. Call me if you find something." Emmett put a hand on my shoulder. "Do whatever she tells you and don't be a pain in her ass. You know, try and not be yourself for a few hours. I'm gonna take the stairway. Look for anything out the ordinary. Maybe this guy came up that way."

The doors to the elevator opened. Bella walked in, and I followed with camera in hand.

"Talk to you soon," Bella said to Emmett.

"We'll find her, Bells," he said as the doors closed.

I shoved my camera back in my camera bag and then set it on the ground. All I wanted was a minute alone with her. I wrapped my arms around her and squeezed her tightly.

"You are so smart and good at this stuff. You are going to get Rose home safe. Don't doubt yourself for a second." I rested my cheek on top of her head. She snaked her arms around my waist and squeezed me back.

"Thanks, _babe._" She lifted her head to look at me.

"Sorry about that, it just slipped out. You should just be happy he was too distracted to notice you're wearing the same clothes as last night." I wiggled my eyebrows and smirked.

She got up on her tip toes and pressed her lips to mine. Then she was out of my arms and over by the doors lighting up the button to her floor.

"Emmett didn't notice. Royce definitely noticed but didn't say anything. I need to change before I see Alice, she will notice _and_ say something."

We went to her room, and I enjoyed the few minutes it took her to change clothes in front of me. At least I could still be distracted, after the heaviness of the morning. She went into the bathroom to fix her hair and clean up a little.

"So, what are you going to do when they contact us and tell us to drop the necklace somewhere?" Without her naked and in front of me, my mind went right back to the problem.

Bella walked out of the bathroom, looking a little refreshed. She was wearing jeans and a plain white t-shirt. Bella didn't wear makeup, her hair was wrapped up in some sort of bun. Bella didn't need much to look beautiful; she just was.

"I don't know. Her parents are going to want to do whatever this guy tells them to do. I have to just move fast, find out as much as possible beforehand. If it comes down to it, I'll have to figure out a way a track the necklace once we send it on its way."

She looked worried and tired. I almost felt bad that we had stayed up half the night. Almost. I kissed her forehead, and we headed downstairs to question our one maybe, sort of, kind of suspect.


	14. Chapter 13 Tapes and Tales

Chapter 13 - Tapes and Tales

BPOV

It felt so good to be alone with Edward for even just a few minutes. I didn't have to worry about keeping my guard up or pretending like I wanted to be somewhere other than in his arms. I couldn't even imagine how hard it would be to get through this if he and I hadn't made up last night. My dad always said - God gives you what you need when you need it, not when you want it. I needed Edward, and I got him back. Now, I need Rosalie and had to believe I would get her back as well.

Once we got down to the lobby, I had to put my game face back on. I walked over to the front desk and decided to not even deal with The Bane. I walked right around the counter and to the door I had seen her go in earlier to retrieve Royce.

"Excuse me, you can't go back there!" I heard her call. I didn't stop. Edward followed me, smiling at The Bane apologetically.

It wasn't too hard to find Royce. I walked into his office with Edward and closed the door.

"Detective Swan. I don't believe I called you yet. I am still working on those lists you asked me for." Royce's voice was calm, but I could see the beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He knew I knew something.

"Forget the lists for a minute. Tell me about the last time you saw Rosalie," I said as I sat in one of the chairs in front of his desk. Edward slowly took a seat next to me, a big non-apologetic smile on his face now.

"I saw her at dinner and went with them to see the room where the reception was going to be held." He nervously tugged on his tie and then folded his hands in front of him on the desk.

"Where it _will_ be held," I corrected him. "Enough bullshit. We looked at her phone. We saw the text, Royce. Did you see her after everyone went to their rooms or not?" I was tired.

He shifted uncomfortably. "I knew you would see that. I'm not hiding anything. I texted her. I asked her to meet me and she did." He leaned back in his chair and adjusted his tie again.

"Where did you meet her and what were you meeting about?"

"That's none of your business, Isabella."

I winced at my name. I leaned my elbows on his desk. "Rosalie is missing, being held against her will, her life is being threatened. Everything about this is my business now, you prick. Where and what?"

He sighed. "She met me in a room on the 20th floor. It was a room we used to visit quite often when we were... _together_. She met me around nine-fifteen, we talked about my concerns about this marriage and then she left. We were together maybe twenty minutes. I figured it had nothing to do with her abduction, so I didn't feel the need to tell you." He ran his fingers through his stringy black hair and pulled a cigarette out of his inner suit coat pocket.

As he lit the cigarette, I leaned back in my chair. "So, basically she told you to go fuck yourself, she loves Emmett, and left to go to her room a little after nine-thirty?"

"Think what you want, Bella," he squinted and sneered. "Yes, she left between nine-thirty and nine-forty five."

"And you didn't go up to her room later or follow her up there after she rejected you?" I asked, feeling good about reminding him of his complete failure to win Rosalie back.

"Screw you, Bella."

"Just answer the question, Royce."

"I wasn't up there. I didn't take her. I didn't see anyone take her. Now can I get back to making your lists or do you have more inane questions for me?" He cocked his head slightly and had quite the scowl on his face.

"That's all for now. I want to start looking at the security tapes. Where do I need to go for that?" I smiled as I spoke, knowing it would make him madder.

He led me and Edward to a room further back in the office area. There were black and white TV monitors on the wall and other A/V equipment. A young guy, who looked barely out of high school, was sitting at the desk. He was dressed in a rent-a-cop outfit. No gun but a holster that held what looked like pepper spray and a walkie talkie. I felt safer knowing this kid was protecting the hotel. _Right._

"This is Seth, he can pull up whatever you need," Royce said to me and then to Seth, "Let her look at whatever she wants. Call me when she's done so I can lock my door before she passes my office." With that he left.

We started looking at tapes. Anything after nine-thirty was fair game. There was nothing significant at most of the exits. I figured we'd save the front desk area and front doors for last, since that was the least likely place someone would leave with her but where the most traffic would be. Edward watched with me, at least for as long as his attention would allow. Occasionally, he would rub his hand on my thigh perhaps to distract himself more than me. As long as it wasn't the tongue thing he did on my neck, I wasn't bothered. I was used to this kind of tedium, he was not. He squirmed in his seat and chatted with Seth. I had a feeling Edward was one of those ADHD kids in school. Teachers probably called home wondering if his parents ever considered Ritalin.

About forty-five minutes into it, there they were. The back exit tape was time-stamped 11:42 PM. A man with his face hidden from view by a baseball hat carrying a woman. The picture was in black and white, but the woman had long hair just like Rosalie's and was wearing a dress much like the one Rosalie was wearing last night, exactly like the dress she was wearing last night. She was obviously unconscious and her face was pressed against the man's chest. All you could see was her hair draped over her head like a curtain. I paused the tape and stared at the screen for several minutes.

_Had he hurt her?_

There did not appear to be blood, on him or her from what I could see. Maybe he drugged her or knocked her out with something when she entered the suite.

"Holy shit, there she is." Edward's attention was back on the video.

I started the tape back up. The man carried her to a car that was mostly hidden from view, out of the camera shot. That was it. The man was big and tall, bigger than Emmett. Then the words just popped in my head, Jacob big. The guy had to be around six and half feet tall, I could tell that just by looking at him in comparison to the dumpster near the exit. He held Rosalie in his arms easily. Walked smoothly and swiftly. I couldn't imagine that Jake had anything to do with this, but I couldn't see the guy's face to completely rule him out.

"I need this tape, Seth. Can you set it aside for me?" I said pulling the tape out and handing it to him.

I rubbed my eyes and rested my elbows on the desk in front of me. Edward started rubbing my back, which felt kind of nice.

"That was a really big dude carrying Rosalie out of here," he began tentatively, rubbing my shoulders in an attempt at keeping me relaxed. I knew he was thinking the same thing I was thinking.

"Jacob big," I said through the hands covering my face.

"This thing just keeps getting more interesting by the minute." He sat back as I sat up and turned towards him.

"I need to go through all the tapes from yesterday, see if I can see Jake come into the hotel. I just don't see why he would do something like this, or even be involved in something like this. He's a car mechanic, not a criminally minded kidnapper and diamond thief."

"It appears that anything is possible at this point. I don't know. Maybe he took her so he could find her and be a hero for you," Edward said leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

"What does that mean?" I didn't see his reasoning.

"When I was fifteen, I was in love with this girl who was Emmett's age and who did not date or give the time of day to anyone younger than her. I figured I needed to impress her, get on her good side, so she would give me a chance to win her over with my undeniable charm." He smiled that crooked smile, and I had to laugh. "Anyway, she had this little dog, one of those teacup things girls carry in a purse or whatever. Well, one day, I tagged along with Emmett and his friends to the party on the beach. She was there with her dog and distracted, so I just snatched it. I let her sweat it out a few hours and then returned it, like I had been looking for it all afternoon. I was her hero."

"It actually worked? She dated you after that?" I was riveted by my secret boyfriend's childhood antics. Man, I was really tired.

Edward tousled his bronze colored hair. "We didn't date, but she let me feel her up and gave me a hand job in the back of Emmett's truck that night, so it worked well enough."

I laughed and so did Seth.

"Guys will do anything to get the girl, Bella. Almost anything, for the right girl." He tucked a lock of hair behind my ear that had fallen out of my makeshift bun. Now he was distracting me with those green eyes of his.

I snapped out of my daze. "Well, stealing a dog for a chance at second base is a little different than coming up with an elaborate plan to hold someone ransom to win back your ex-girlfriend, who left the fucking city to get away from your stalker ass."

I just couldn't believe Jake was smart enough to pull this off. I did like the theory though. It made me think about Royce once again.

"Hey, I'm new to this detective shit, cut a guy some slack," Edward joked. He was good for me to have around, even if he was slightly distracting. He kept me from being totally lost in this.

"I need to go back up to the suite. Do you think you could look at some tapes and see if you spot Jake?" I asked, getting up from my seat.

Edward looked unsure. "Well, I only saw the guy one time, in a not so bright stairway, and his face was attached to yours, so I don't know if I could pick him in a crowd. Unless you think I can spot him based solely on the fact that I know he's huge."

I hated thinking he saw Jake kissing me. It was not a moment I wanted to relive either. He was right, though. I needed someone who knew who he was looking for.

"Let's see if Emmett can come down here and help you do this. I'm going to go back up to the suite." I pulled out my phone and dialed Emmett's number.

Edward stood up and wrapped his arm around my waist. "Do I have to stay here or can I go with you?"

Emmett picked up before I could answer. "Bells, what's up? What do you know?"

"We found footage of someone, I can't make out who, carrying her out of the building. I need you to come down to the lobby and take over for me. I need you to go through lobby footage and see if you can find Jake entering the building yesterday." I knew this was going to set him off.

"Jake? What the hell is going on, Bella?"

"I need to rule him out, Em. I need you to look through some tapes while I go back upstairs."

"What about Royce? Anything new there?" I was dreading this question.

"He met with her last night but said they went their separate ways around nine-thirty. She told him to fuck off. I have other concerns though. We'll talk more after I look over the suite one more time." I hoped I calmed his fears and doubts. Rosalie was 100% in love with Emmett. There was no doubt in my mind about that. I had plenty of other doubts to deal with, but that was not one of them.


	15. Chapter 14 Double Take

EPOV

I wanted to stay with Bella. Being with her was all that mattered, but she took my camera and headed up to the suite by herself. I was left with my brother, who was not as fun to look at as my secret girlfriend. He also had less patience with me than Bella did. About five minutes into looking at tapes, my restlessness started to annoy him.

"Can you sit still for like a second? God, your bouncing and constant chattering are enough to make me nuts!"

"Sorry." I tried to be good and shut my mouth, but I had been in this damn room way too long.

"Go, see if you can find me some coffee or something. You are annoying the shit out of me." Emmett was fried, and I was not helping him.

"Sorry! I've been sitting here for like an hour, you know. I'll get you some coffee and something to eat. You're always a little bitch when you haven't eaten." I smiled, letting him know I was kidding. I could only imagine the amount of stress he was under.

"Thanks," he replied, turning back to the video monitor.

I headed out of the room and down the hall. I walked past Royce, who was sitting at his fancy schmancy desk on the phone. I made my way to the front desk and smiled at the girl behind the counter.

"You wouldn't be able to tell me where I could find some coffee and maybe some bagels or something?" I smiled and played nice.

"Well, there's a Starbucks two buildings over. I'm about to go on break. If you can wait five minutes, I could walk you down there." She was flirting with me. Girls like her always flirted with me. But seeing how I was now dating the hottest, sexiest, and smartest detective in all of the world, there was no desire to flirt back.

"That's really sweet, but my girlfriend is waiting for her double latte, and you do not want to see that girl off her caffeine."

"What girlfriend is that, you punk?"

I turned around and there was Mike Newton holding two cups of coffee and a bag of something I was sure would be filling my brother's belly soon.

"Mike."

"Where's Em?"

"He's back looking at some video surveillance. Did he call you? Did he tell you what was going on?" I wasn't sure what was up with his appearance.

"Yeah, I talked to him a little bit ago. Why is he looking at video? I mean, I thought they were just going to give these guys what they wanted?" He set the coffee on the counter in front of me.

"Bella is all over this, dude. She's piecing it all together. We're going to bust this asshole before anything else goes down," I whispered so nobody else could hear.

Mike was visibly flustered. "Bad idea, man. They said not to mess with them. You guys are putting Rose in danger. Where's Emmett?"

I took him back to Emmett, carrying the coffee for him. Emmett was rewinding and re-watching certain sections of tape.

"Em, stop. What the hell are you doing?" Mike challenged.

Emmett turned his attention to us at the door. "Mike-"

"I thought you were gonna wait this out! I thought the Hales agreed to just turn over the necklace."

"They are, we're just looking at things. Just me and Bella. We can't just sit here, waiting to hear something. We have to be on the offensive."

"You could be risking her life, man." Mike sounded worried, nervous.

"You don't think I know that? You don't think that this is killing me? But we can't just sit here and do nothing. I can't do nothing, Mike. You know me. You know Bella." My brother was overcome again. I felt his pain. I knew Bella was feeling the same thing.

"I think you two need to stop and wait until these guys contact you again. Not take any unnecessary risks. Where is Bells?" Mike threw the bag of goodies at Emmett, and I carried the coffee over to him.

"She's back upstairs, searching the suite one more time." Emmett pulled out some big pastry and shoved it in his mouth. At least he hadn't lost his appetite yet.

Mike dug in his pocket and pulled out his phone. "I need to talk to her. Does she have her phone?" He started dialing.

Emmett nodded, his mouth too full to answer.

"I can take you up there," I offered. Anything to get me out of this room and back around Bella was of interest to me.

"Bella, Mike. I just got here." He paused while she talked. "Yeah, what did you find? I'm coming up." Mike snapped his phone shut and headed for the door.

"What did she find?" Emmett called after him.

"I don't know; she said she found something that's important. I don't know what it is but I do know you guys are playing with fire. I hope Rose doesn't get burned." Mike walked out.

I followed behind, after giving Emmett my best _don't worry about it _look. Mike was in some big rush to get to Bella. We walked to the elevators when it hit me.

"Shit, we need a special key or something to get up there." Mike stopped and stood in place, not turning back to look at me.

That's when I saw _her_. She strolled past Newton without a second look, as if someone like her would give him the time of day. I couldn't help but stare for a moment. It wasn't that she was tall and shapely, with hair that fell over her shoulders like a strawberry blond waterfall or that she was strikingly beautiful. It was that, for a split second, I thought she was Rosalie. The hair was a different color, but at first glance, she made you think of Rosalie. This freaky Rosalie look-a-like wore a Hale Tower uniform. I turned to watch her go behind the front desk.

I made my way back over there and politely asked my new flirtatious friend for the special key, throwing Royce's name in there for good measure. I tried to inconspicuously look at the new woman standing behind the counter. Her name tag said Tanya. Now that I was closer, I could see how different she looked from Rose. Rosalie was definitely better looking. The flirter gave me the elevator key, batting her eyes and biting her lip. She was still working it, even though she knew I had a girlfriend. I smiled to myself. Me, Seth, and the the front lobby girl. We shared the big secret. It felt good that it was out to a couple people at least, even if those people were random hotel workers I would probably never see again.

Newton and I got in the elevator and headed up to see my Bella. I tried not to look too excited.

"Did you see that chick that looked like Rosalie? I mean, not close up, but when she walked past you, I had to do a double take," I said, making conversation.

"I didn't notice," Mike said, without looking at me. He stared straight ahead.

"How could you not notice? Even if she didn't make you think of Rose, she was _noticeable_." Every guy in that lobby noticed Tanya, no doubt.

"I didn't notice, Edward." He looked annoyed.

"All right then, sorry for bothering you. I'll shut up now." I was really looking forward to seeing Bella again. My brother and Newton made me feel like nothing but a nuisance. I needed someone to want me around.


	16. Chapter 15 Evidence

**A/N: This story is a lot harder to write. Trying to put in stuff without putting other stuff in. Hope you guys are enjoying reading as much as I am writing. This chapter is super short but I have another one ready to go. Bella and Edward get some quality one on one time soon...**

BPOV

Evidence. I knew I needed evidence. What I didn't know was how I was going to find any. I left Edward behind with Emmett, figuring Em could use some brotherly companionship. I walked past Royce's office. His door was open and he was grabbing some papers out of his printer.

"Isabella! Here are your lists. These are the people who worked yesterday and these are the people who had off." He handed me several sheets of paper.

"Jesus," I mumbled. I hadn't imagined that this many people worked here. Royce picked up on my surprise.

"Hale Tower employs almost five hundred people, what were you expecting?"

"It's fine." I started to go but stopped and turned back. "Can I have that master key?"

He shot me a furtive glance. I explained, taking in his expression, "I forgot my key in my room, and I need to go back up to the suite. So can I just have your master key?"

"We don't have master keys, Detective. You can get a new room key from the front desk and one for the penthouse suite as well. I have informed Jessica to cooperate with you. Now, if you don't mind, I have a hotel to run." He sat back at his desk and shooed me away with his hand.

No master key? So Royce just happened to have the key to Rosalie's suite in his pocket this morning? What the fuck? This was driving me insane. Evidence. I needed evidence that put him in that fucking room.

I walked to the front desk, and The Bane blanched. "Jessica, I hear we can be friends again. I need two keys, one to my room and one to the Presidential Suite. I also need the elevator key." I was hoping she would be good about it.

Jessica came through and made up a couple cards for me. She opened a drawer next to her and stopped. Just when we were doing so well.

"That's weird." She shifted some things around in the drawer.

"What's weird?" I leaned over the counter to see what she was looking at.

"It's just, we usually have four elevator keys. Mr. King took one this morning and put it back a little bit ago, but there are only two in here."

"You're missing an elevator key?" I said out loud because I needed to hear her say it.

"Maybe Mr. King didn't put his back. I could be mistaken." She handed me a key, and I let this information sink in. There were four keys. Rosalie must have had one. I was holding one and one more was in the drawer. Where was the fourth one? She first said Royce put his back, but now she wasn't sure. I needed to get up to that room, but even more so, I needed to use the bathroom. I made a beeline for the restroom in the lobby. I walked in and took care of business. While I was washing my hands, a woman walked in with her cell phone to her ear.

"No, I told you not to come by here today. It's not smart. Sam, seriously. I will call you when I get off work. I have to go. I have to be out there in fifteen minutes. Don't you dare come here." She looked rattled and pressed a button on her phone to disconnect. She was beautiful and for quick second I thought of Rose when I saw her. She was built like her and had long, flowy, girly girl hair but this girl's was strawberry blond instead of the goldilocks Rosalie was born with.

I dried my hands with paper towels as we made eye contact.

"Annoying ex-boyfriend, can't get rid of him, some guys can't take a hint." She shrugged as we passed each other.

"Yeah, been there." I smiled sympathetically. Annoying stalkerish ex-boyfriends. Mine, Rosalie's. I didn't know what the hell was going on anymore.

I made my way up to the suite and pulled out Edward's camera during the ride. I started scrolling through the pictures he took earlier. Digital cameras were nice, but the screens were so fucking small. The first one in the playback, meaning the last picture Edward had taken, was of me standing on the balcony. I was looking out over the city, thinking about Rosalie. I looked so heartbreaking. Why would he take a picture of me? The next few were of the balcony. He took like ten shots of the planters. Maybe he thought he could sell them to a gardening magazine later of something. _Jesus._ All of the sudden, one picture of the planters caught my attention. I tried to zoom in with no success, damn these fancy ass professional cameras. I looked as closely as I could. Something white in the sea of green. Something very small and white. The doors to the elevator opened, and I ran out.

I pulled out the key and ran to the balcony. I didn't want to leave fingerprints on anything we might have to dust later. I grabbed the fireplace poker and slid the door open. I went over to the corner with the planter and dug my hand in the back. There sitting in the leaves was a cigarette butt. A cigarette butt. Someone was out here, smoking, waiting for Rosalie. I had Edward take pictures out here because something told me he sat out here. He sat out here because it was a breathtaking view and he had time to kill, he was waiting for Rosalie. He smoked a cigarette and thought he threw it over the railing but he didn't. It landed in the planter.

I had it. Evidence.

I ran into the suite and to the kitchen. Rosalie had been living here, she must a a bag or something I could put this in. I rummaged through cabinets and drawers. Finally, I found a ziploc baggie with some almonds in it, Rosalie's favorite snack. I dumped out the almonds and wiped the bag out with a paper towel. I placed the cigarette butt in the bag and sealed it. I shoved it in my pocket. Damn it, if I could just call a favor into the police.

My phone rang, and I answered it without even looking at who was calling. It was Mike. Mike could help me. Mike could take the cigarette butt to someone, maybe he could pretend it was for some other case and get someone to look at it. He was coming up, we were going to bust Royce. Maybe Edward was right, maybe he was in here waiting for her. He saw them on the monitor and called her, sending her to another room so Emmett would go. Maybe she went there and Royce wasn't there, so she came back up. He could have knocked her out and had someone take her out of here. Maybe he was just biding his time and was planning on rescuing her so the Hales would see him as a hero, so _Rosalie_ would see him as a hero. It seemed a little crazy, but at this point, anything was possible. Just like Edward said. Anything was possible.


	17. Chapter 16 Team Edward

EPOV

I watched the numbers above the elevator door light up. It felt like we stood in silence for an eternity. All I wanted was to see Bella. Even though I was stuck with Newton, and I wouldn't be able to put my hands on her, seeing her was still better than nothing. My hands would be on her later, hopefully not too much later. Before we got to the top, the doors opened. There in the hall, stood the formally very perky wedding planner and my parents.

"Edward!" my mother called out. Her eyes were rimmed red; she had obviously been crying.

"Are you going up to the penthouse? I need to talk to Bella. Emmett said she was up there," slightly perkier wedding planner asked jumping into the elevator.

I held out my hand to hold the door open.

"Mom, everything is going to be fine. Don't worry. Bella is an excellent detective. She is working really hard to find out what happened. She won't let Emmett down," I tried to reassure her as I could see and feel her worry.

"Perhaps you should stay with us, Edward. So you don't... get in the way," my father added with his disapproving look. My father could belittle me better than Newton and my brother combined.

I moved my hand and stepped way back in the elevator, my eyes never leaving his. I wasn't getting out of this elevator ,and I sure as hell wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of a reply to his insinuation that I would mess things up. The doors started closing, and I quickly looked to my mother and gave her a little smile.

"Christmas must be fun at your house," the elfin one chirped.

"You have no idea." I clenched my jaw and went back to watching the numbers while Newton and Alice talked about this whole mess. Finally we reached our destination. I pulled out the key, and we all stepped out.

"I'll take that." Mike reached out his hand to me.

"The key?"

"Yeah, the key. What the hell do you need it for? What are you even doing here?" Mike snapped.

"I...I..." I didn't have a good answer.

Newton grabbed my hand and took the key. Although my father was the best at making me feel like a worthless piece of shit, Newton was holding his own. The door to the penthouse opened and there she was, my only reason for _being, _here, there, or anywhere. A big crooked smile crossed my face as she made eye contact with me. Her cheeks turned pink, and she looked away. I was glad my presence had a positive effect on someone.

"I found something." She looked darn right giddy. Everyone followed her into the suite, and she pulled a plastic bag out of her pocket. A cigarette butt. _Gross._

"He was up here, waiting for her. He went out on the balcony to smoke because he had time to kill. He knew she was still showing the Cullens around. He knew he had time. So, he had a smoke. He was probably a little nervous, and he smokes when he's nervous," she was talking a mile a minute.

"Who the heck are you talking about?" Alice interrupted.  
"Bella, you have to stop this," Mike chimed in at the same time

"What?" Bella looked at Mike and then at Alice. "Royce, everything points to Royce."

"Royce?" Mike exclaimed, rubbing his forehead.

"Mike, I need you to give this to someone. Eric, Angela, or even Clearwater. I need you to have someone test it. Find some fingerprints or pull off some DNA, I don't know."

"Are you kidding me? Bella, they said don't fuck with them. They said they will hurt Rosalie or maybe kill her if you get the police involved. Why are you fucking around?" Mike was pissed. It was the same kind of pissed he was when he was talking to Emmett.

"Because I got him. I got the son of a bitch, Mike. He isn't going to hurt her. He wants to come out of this looking like the good guy." Bella was so passionate. God, I wished we weren't in a room full of people.

"You got nothing. A cigarette that could have been here forever. You have nothing! I think you need to stop. Stop and wait for these people to contact the Hales again. Just give them what they want, so we can get Rosalie back! You're going to get her fucking killed, Bella!" Mike roared at her. It made me feel protective.

I put my hand on his shoulder and stepped in between them. "Don't talk to her like that."

"Shut the fuck up, Edward." He pushed my hand away. I turned to face him ready to take him on. I wasn't a fighter, but I could definitely take Newton.

"Edward, stop." Bella pulled on my arm. "Why don't you go sit in the other room," she said as I turned to her. She was asking me to leave, she was sending me away like I was some child who couldn't be apart of the grown up conversation. I looked at her with hurt in my eyes.

"Just go sit in there." She nodded towards the living room.

I couldn't speak, I could barely swallow, my throat felt dry and closed off. I turned and went to the living room to sulk. She was the one person I hoped wouldn't make me feel this way.

They resumed their conversation, and I tried not to listen. I could feel my face burning red. I could give a shit what Newton thought about me. My brother was under a lot of stress and was probably going to take crap out on everyone today. My father, well, my father didn't know how to do anything but demean me and make me feel like a loser, so I didn't give a fuck about that. But Bella. Bella was the one person that saw me as someone. Someone useful. Someone that mattered. But she just dismissed me, like I was a nobody. I dropped my head in my hands and raked them both through my hair. I rubbed my tired eyes and stared back at the three of them in the foyer.

Bella was arguing with Newton. "Can't you just stay here and be here for Emmett today? You can't tell me there is anything more important than being here for him. He's your best friend."

"I have to work, Bells."

"That's bullshit. I know you disagree with me and him about how to handle this, but you are going to stay here and do whatever he needs you to do right now. I will kick the shit out of you if you don't." At least she was pissed at him. It made me feel a little better. She could probably kick his ass better than I could anyways.

"Fine! But I can't hang around here forever. I'll stay until two, then I have to go back to work." Newton turned and headed out the door. Alice hugged Bella and they whispered back and forth to each other. Then she was out the door as well.

I sat back on the couch with my arms crossed in front of my chest. If she was going to treat me like a child, I could act like a child. Bella walked back to where I was sitting and plopped herself on the couch with a loud sigh.

"Didn't know you jumped ship to Team Carlisle," I said, not looking at her but instead focusing on the outrageously expensive painting hanging above the fireplace. _Was that a Monet?_

"What? What does that mean?" She sounded surprised and scooted closer to me, putting her hand on my arms. I tensed at her touch. "Are you mad at me?"

I turned to look at her. "Mad at you?" I let out an angry laugh. "You know I expect to be treated like an imbecile by my father. I also know my brother, mother, and anyone who knows Emmett thinks I'm an idiot. But you, I thought you looked at me differently." I had to break away from her big, brown eyes and stare back at the fireplace.

"Edward," she sighed. "Look at me." I was going to be stubborn, so I didn't do as she said. "Edward look at me." She sounded all sweet and nice.

I inhaled deeply and then without turning my head shifted my eyes in her direction.

Bella put her hand on my shoulder and pressed her leg against mine. "Edward." She let out a half laugh.

I turned to look at her. "Don't you laugh at me."

She climbed on my lap and straddled me like she did early this morning, before all this madness took over.

"I'm not laughing at you. I was not trying to make you feel like you weren't important. You are so very important." She took my face in her hands and made me look at her. She was smiling, and I could feel my body react to the position she had chosen. I uncrossed my arms and put my hands on her tiny little waist.

"You made me feel like you didn't want me around, like everyone else has been making me feel since you left me downstairs with Emmett." I dropped my eyes from her intense stare.

She rested her forehead on mine. "I sent you in here because I could see you wanted to kick Mike's ass, and you would have been able to take him. But I need him to take care of Emmett, so you can stay with me."

She pushed her hips closer to me, something I didn't think was possible, but I was enjoying it very much. Her mouth was so close to mine, I could almost taste her. I looked back into her chocolate eyes that were dancing with that damn passion again, but this time the passion was all mine.

"You want me to stay with you?" I asked as I pulled her hips down on my very aroused lap. She groaned and it made me dizzy.

"I am 100% Team Edward," she said huskily. Then her lips were on mine. Our mouths moved together perfectly. Our tongues rolled together, and I couldn't stop myself from moaning in her mouth. She rocked her hips and I thought I might explode. My hands made their way under her t-shirt and her body was so warm. Her hands were now in my hair, pulling and driving me wild.

Then her phone went off. It rang and she slowed her kisses, finally pulling her mouth from mine. Both of us were breathing hard.

"I fucking hate your fucking phone," I said as I dropped my hands to my sides and leaned my head back staring at the ceiling.

She reached into her back pocket and pulled out the little silver bastard. She looked at the caller id.

"Alice."

Now I had to hate the little one as well. Bella tried to slow her breathing, then she opened her phone.

"What's up, Alice?" Bella was quiet and then she closed her eyes. She rolled off of my lap, and now I really hated that damn pixie.

"I'll be right down. Try to keep her quiet. Thanks, Alice." She stood up, and I knew our carefree little break was over. She hung up her phone and jammed it back in her pocket.

"What's the matter, now?" I asked adjusting my jeans as I stood up so things would be a little more comfortable.

"Unfortunately, you aren't the only one with parent issues."

**A/N: I'm a tease, I admit it. I promised quality time not quantity. Poor Edward will hopefully forgive me. **


	18. Chapter 17 Prizes and Introductions

BPOV

I know I shouldn't be making out with my boyfriend when my best friend is being held hostage by her fruit loop ex-boyfriend, but I couldn't help it. I couldn't help wanting to make Edward feel loved. I got the distinct impression people didn't make him feel that way very often. Maybe his mother tried to, but something told me that he never really let himself feel it from her. I wanted him to _feel_ it from me. He was definitely feeling it.

But Alice stopped all that, and now I was standing in the elevator once again headed to the lobby. Headed to my mother. My mother, who probably woke up this morning to a warm cup of coffee spiked with something that would really leave her feeling all warm. She had heard I was here and came to see me. She couldn't get me in my room, and it is sad to say, but I have her number blocked on my cell. I only allow her to call and leave me drunken messages on my home phone. After my dad died, it just became too overwhelming all day long to get call after call from her when I was trying to work. So, she was here and decided to wait for me in the one place she felt at home, the bar. For the love of God, it wasn't even noon. Alice found her at the front desk, making quite a scene. She had decided that the hotel was hiding me from her, and she wanted someone to give her my room number and a key. Something told me Jessica wasn't surprised to find she was related to me. Alice was keeping her quiet until I could get down there.

Edward was obviously disappointed we couldn't finish our moment but didn't try to make me feel bad about it. He was trying to keep me calm by rubbing the back of my neck and distracting me with his silly thoughts.

"So before me, you dated two total assholes. I'm trying to figure out what that says about me?"

"All it says is I finally got an upgrade." I leaned into him slightly.

"Oh, I like that. I don't know if anyone has ever considered me an upgrade before." He seemed pleased. He kissed the top of my head and smiled his adorable crooked smile.

"You are a definite upgrade in every department," I smirked.

It still amazed me that Edward thought so little of himself. He was unbelievably handsome, like something out of those stupid magazines he sells pictures to. He was funny, talented, kind. He was gentle in a way I had never experienced with a guy before. Maybe because I grew up around cops and now was a cop. Police officers can't afford to be gentle or soft, not on the job where I saw them all the time. Edward was manly but soft in just the right ways. Then there was his bedroom prowess. I was fairly certain there were few men as good as Edward when it came to sex. He was a huge upgrade in that department.

"What's Newton story anyway? Why is the guy so pissed off? He was yelling at Emmett before he came upstairs to yell at you."

"Mike," I sighed. "Mike and Emmett are best friends, but Mike has always been jealous of Emmett."

"Ah, no one knows better than I about living in the shadow of Mr. Emmett Cullen. But I still don't like the guy. I don't like the way he was talking to you."

"Well, I think Mike always had a thing for Rosalie. I think that's why he started dating me in the first place, just to be around her."

"Wow, who has low self-esteem now?" He raised a perfect eyebrow at me.

"I don't care anymore. Really, who doesn't fall all over themselves in front of Rosalie? I mean she is so out of his league, there was never a chance in hell, but I think he eventually figured he could live vicariously through Emmett. I think he's really worried about her." I had no other explanation than that.

"Really, that's funny because I saw this chick today that totally looked like Rosalie, and he didn't even notice," he said as he took his hand off my neck, we were stopping on Floor 13.

The doors opened, and an elderly woman with a bunch of bags was waiting to get on. Edward was quick to hold the door open and offered to grab a couple bags for her.

"A lovely lady like you should not have to carry your own bags." He smiled and winked at her. She blushed and gave him a big smile. Edward Cullen, he can charm the pants off the young and old.

She turned and looked at me as he took his place back at my side. "That one's a keeper, don't you let him go," she said, wagging a finger at me.

"Oh, trust me, she's the prize in this package, ma'am." Edward wrapped an arm around me. Definitely charming the pants off me.

_God, why did my mother have to show up? _I would have literally been charmed out of these pants back in the penthouse suite.

Again, he stopped touching me as we made it down to the lobby. It felt terrible to not be able to touch him, show him affection in front of everyone. He grabbed up all of the lady's bags and helped her get them to the front desk. Edward was a prize. He was my prize. I had no doubt about that.

"Isabella! Isabella is that you?" A voice rang out from the seating area in the lobby. I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. I sometimes hate that the Ten Commandments included thou shall not kill and honor thy mother and father. My mother had always tempted me to break both of them. _Hell couldn't be that bad._

I turned towards the voice and there she was. My mother was a mess. Her hair was wild, her clothes were inappropriate for someone her age, and she could not walk in a straight line. She really was beautiful but a couple years of drinking herself to death had taken their toll. She ran towards me and flung her arms around my neck. I could smell the liquor like it was seeping out of her skin.

"Oh, baby. I thought they lost you. I thought I lost you. You know I can't lose you, too," she mumbled into my hair.

"Mom, Mom." I was locked in her grip. "Everything's fine. I'm fine. What are you doing here and how did you get here?"

The thought of her driving all the way from Port Angeles inebriated made me furious. Someday she would be the one who killed some family or something and walked away unscathed. I had nightmares about it.

"Oh, Isabella. I have missed you. I drove here because you didn't call me. You didn't call me and tell me when you were coming to see me. So, I came to see you." She let me out of her hold and stood back, a little off balance, to look at me.

"Jesus, Mother. You should not be driving after your morning _coffee._" I was livid, but she was oblivious.

"Isabella, don't use the Lord's name in vain."

I laughed. She should be happy that was the only commandment I was breaking at the moment. Alice looked at me sympathetically. She knew all too well what I had been dealing with since my dad died. Edward slowly approached us, and I could see the indecision on his face. He wasn't sure if he should even acknowledge us. I was done treating him like a big fucking secret. I knew this day sucked. I knew everyone was going to freak out a little bit, but if I was going to get through dealing with my mother, I was going to need him. I nodded for him to come over. He made a face that seemed to be asking me if I was sure. I nodded.

"Hello, ladies," he said as he came upon us.

Alice turned and so did my mother, just not as gracefully as Alice managed it. She fell into Edward, and he deftly caught her in his arms so she didn't fall.

"Well, hello yourself, Gorgeous," she slurred so _not _seductively.

Edward smiled and set her upright best he could.

"Mother, this is Edward, Emmett's brother. He and I know each other from Chicago." I stepped towards him and took his hand in mine. He looked at me warily, then Alice, then back at me. "We have been seeing each other in Chicago. Romantically." I shot a quick glance at Alice. She looked like her eyes might pop out of her head. "Edward, this is my mother, Renee."

I searched his face for any sign that I had said something I shouldn't have. He squeezed my hand tightly in his and then smiled his sweet crooked smile at my mother.

"It's so nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Swan." His voice was smooth, and his smile lit up his whole face. His green eyes almost sparkled.

He should have been careful about throwing his charm around. My mother seemed to get a little lightheaded and don't think it had anything to do with her blood alcohol content. She put her hand on her chest and wobbled a little where she stood.

"Isabella. Holy shit." My mother seemed at a loss for words.

"You can say that again," Alice huffed.

My mother regained some sense of composure. "Please call me Renee, Edward."

"Renee, it is. You have a wonderful daughter by the way." He let go of my hand and wrapped his arm around my waist.

"A lying, giant secret keeping, dead daughter," Alice mumbled under her breath but loud enough for me to hear.

"Oh, of course she is. Isabella is just like her father." Her eyes started to well with tears, and I knew what was coming. Crying, blubbering, and the need for more to drink. _Shit._

"Mom, Mom." I needed to distract her quickly. "We need to get you back home. Today is not a good day for me to visit with you. I don't mean to sound harsh, but I need to take you home and I promise that before I leave I will come and see you. Today is just not good for me."

I whirled her around and directed her back to the seating area where Alice had been containing her earlier. Edward and Alice followed us over.

"Sit here for a second. I need to find another car." I was going to have to drive her home and have someone follow me in another car so I could get back here. This is so not what I needed today. I started walking towards the front desk when Alice snagged me by the arm.

"Not so fast, Bella." She was mad, evil pixie mad.

"Alice, I would love to explain, but right now I have to drive my drunk ass mother home, find our missing best friend, and catch the asshole who took her. So, I really don't have time to go into detail about it." _It_ being Edward, who was kindly trying to keep my mother company. She was touching his leg as she talked to him, and he was politely removing her hand every time it crept up a little too far.

"Edward? You and Emmett's brother? You acted like he was the plague yesterday and today you're _romantically _seeing him? Since when do you even talk like that? Who are you? Do I need to have someone check to see if the real Bella Swan was also kidnapped and replaced by some clone freak?" Alice was reeling. I really didn't have time to explain, but at least I knew that she was the one who would spread the word the fastest. I figured I would come back to a hotel full of people who knew about us.

"It's me. I swear. I'm sorry. It is a complicated story that so does not matter right now. Could you please go rescue Edward and sit with her so she doesn't end up molesting him," I begged, knowing I had no right to ask anything of her.

"Fine. But you will talk to me before the day is done." She was very clear. I had no doubt she would lock me in a room and beat it out of me if I didn't cooperate.

"Deal. Thanks."

Alice bounced over to my mother and Edward and sent Edward over to me. I took his hand, and we headed to the front desk.

We made our way behind the desk after I shared a pained smile with Jessica. I actually felt bad that she had been verbally assaulted by my mother. We walked past the woman I saw earlier in the bathroom as well.

"You can't go back there," she said as I started for the door.

"It's okay, Tanya. Mr. King said she has full access. Anything she needs _or else_," Jessica added the last part, I think, as a warning not to piss me off more than Royce. I almost laughed.

We walked down the hall and past Royce's office. The door was closed. I made my way back to the video room and found Emmett and Mike fast forwarding through another tape. I let go of Edward's hand, knowing Alice would fill him in soon enough. Right now, we needed him to cooperate with us, not kill his brother.

"Em. I need to borrow your car."

**A/N: I love Edward in this chapter. He is just too cute. He really has no idea how wonderful he is. Bella just had to let someone know what he means to her, funny that the person she tries to keep out of her life the most is the one she chooses to introduce him to first.**


	19. Chapter 18 Parent Problems

EPOV

I wasn't sure what was more mind-blowing, the fact that Bella's mother was so wasted at eleven-thirty in the morning and was practically trying to touch me, you know, _there _or that Bella just outed us to the crazy, spiky-haired wedding planner, who looked like she could kill. It was nice to have her claim me, though. Like I was important to her. She said it upstairs, but she showed it just now. I couldn't even think of anything to say to her as she dragged me back to where Emmett was looking at surveillance tapes. I knew to keep my mouth shut when she dropped my hand as soon as we were in the same room with Emmett and Mike.

"Em. I need to borrow your car," she said as we stood to their backs.

Emmett pressed pause on the video and turned to look at us. Mike leaned back in his chair and glared at us like we had interrupted something really important.

"Sure, Bells. Where are you going?" Emmett stood up and without hesitation reached in his pocket and handed Bella his keys.

"Port Angeles." She grimaced.

"What the hell are you going to Port Angeles for?" Mike shouted from behind Emmett.

"My mother showed up here and is in no shape to drive herself home. I _need_ her to go home, so I have to take her," Bella explained with a huge amount of irritation in her voice.

"Oh, sorry, Bells." Emmett put his hand on her shoulder and gave her a little squeeze. He had obviously met Renee in all her glory before. I wondered if he had been frisked by her as well.

"I forgot your mom moved there. I'll take her for you." Mike jumped up looking very eager to get out of the hell hole I knew this room was probably becoming for him. I would not last another second in this room.

"No, I need you to stay and help Emmett. Edward is going to come with me, and we'll be back as soon as possible. Just call me if you hear anything, and do not let the Hales do anything before I get back, no matter what happens."

"You got it." Emmett walked back to his seat. "Edward, I really appreciate your help today. Thanks for helping Bella with this. I'm amazed she hasn't had to complain about you once today."

_Oh, nobody's complaining yet._ "No problem, Em. Bella's my friend, too, remember?"

Bella's face turned three shades of red in under ten seconds.

"The car is right by the second level elevators in the parking garage. Can't miss it."

"Thanks again, Em." Bella turned and walked out with me following close behind. We needed to get out of here before the wicked witch of the wedding came back here and ratted us out. Emmett was going to flip.

Once we were in the hallway, Bella grabbed my hand again. "Sorry, I just know how he's going to react. He's very protective of me, and I sense he has some _issues_ with you."

"No need to explain, my love. I think I'll be glad he finds out when I am safely in a car several miles away from here." I smiled and squeezed her hand.

Bella slowed as we came up to Royce's office. The door was slightly ajar and there was a familiar voice coming from inside.

"Well, at least we got the wedding postponed. You just hang in here. I'll let you know what I want you to do next."

Bella looked at me wide eyed. The next thing I knew the door was opening and out strode Mr. Howard Hale. Bella almost threw my hand out of hers.

"Bella." He didn't seem at all rattled finding her outside the door. "I came to bring you the list you asked for. We've heard nothing on our end. There have been no calls, no letters, nothing. What have you been able to figure out here?"

I could see her mind working. She could not tell him what she found. She couldn't tell him anything.

"Not much, unfortunately, Sir. Whoever did this was very careful. Um, they didn't leave me much to follow." She looked over his shoulder as Royce came up behind Mr. Hale.

"Well, Mr. Hale has me following up a lead. Maybe I will be able to crack this thing open and save you the trouble." Royce sneered and flaunted a piece of paper that he held in his hand.

Bella looked like she could rip his head off.

"What lead would that be?" Her breathing was out of whack, and I guessed it was taking every ounce of self control in her not to lunge at the paper he was waving in his hand.

"I came to find that there was someone else bidding on the necklace back when I purchased it. I was going to have Royce look into him for me," Mr. Hale said cooly.

"Who was the other bidder?" she asked, trying to keep her emotions under control.

"Aro, Aro Volturi. You've heard of him, I'm sure."

"Aro? Really? Well, that is an interesting find, isn't it?" Bella seemed to know who this Aro was. Me, I just stood there like a total dweeb, having no idea who we were talking about and painfully aware that I was serving no purpose.

"Royce is going to contact some people he knows who are close to the Volturi family. I am guessing he will know something by late this afternoon. Hopefully, that will be helpful. I will check back in later. I need to get back to Gwendolyn, she's been a wreck all morning. She canceled her morning tennis lesson and her manicure this afternoon. All she wants to do is sit by the phone." He shook hands with Royce and nodded to me and Bella.

Royce smiled smugly and folded the paper Mr. Hale gave him, taunting Bella. No one should taunt Bella.

"Good luck with all that, Royce." Bella smiled right back. Again she grabbed my hand, leading us into the lobby.

"Poor Mrs. Hale, canceled tennis _and_ a manicure. She really is having a rough day." My sarcasm was thick but Bella didn't laugh or smile.

"We have got to get my mother home and then head over to Kings and Queens. This is unbelievable. Rose will disown him if he has something to do with this. Disown. Cut all ties. Refuse to speak to him ever again. He will irrevocably break her heart."

"I guess there could be a bigger insider than Royce." I tried to pick up the pace as she dragged me over to her mother and Alice.

"OK, let's go, Mom. Where is your car and your keys?"

"Right here." She started digging in her purse but didn't pull anything out. "Oh, wait, maybe I valet parked. Yes, a very cute Asian boy took my car for me when I pulled up. I love Asians, their so exotic looking, don't you think, Alice?"

"Oh, God, please let's just go." Bella grabbed her mother's arm and started tugging her to the door.

Just then I heard my own mother's voice, "Edward, sweetheart. There you are."

My parents came gliding over to us. This was not going to go well. I could see Bella's face blanch. This is not how we wanted our parents to meet or my parents to find out that she and I were together. I stepped away from Bella and Renee and went to meet my mother before she got too close.

"Mom, I have to run out for a little bit. I'll be back in a few hours."

"Where are you going when your brother is dealing with all of this? You can't just go running off. Honey, Emmett needs our support right now."

"I'm sure there must be some celebrities nearby or something. Maybe there's a strip club open at this hour of the day he needs to check out. Remember Irina's wedding when he took Laurent out and got them both arrested the night before the ceremony? Let's just be glad Emmett's not running out with him." My father had a way of dredging up every bad choice I ever made and throwing it in my face at the worst time.

I could feel my jaw clench. I inhaled and then tried to speak calmly. "Emmett asked me to do something for him. Help out Bella with something. So, if you don't mind. I really can't stay and chat."

"Edward, is this your parents?" Renee was calling from behind me. I could hear Bella pleading with her to stay put and shut up.

I turned to face her and forced a smile. Bella was struggling to hold on to her as she made her way over. _So much for controlling this situation._

"Renee Swan, Esme and Carlisle Cullen," I said as politely as I could muster. I looked at Bella trying to convey it would be okay, as okay as I could make it.

Renee staggered over to my mother and gave her a hug. I was sure my mother could smell the alcohol, hell, I could smell it from where I was standing.

"Esme, what an unusual name. But beautiful, just like you. Carlisle." Renee lunged towards my father, who took a step back and held out his hand.

"Mrs. Swan. A pleasure," he said, keeping his distance.

"Oh, you're the pleasure. A pleasure to look at, just like this one over here." She stepped towards me and wrapped her arms around my arm. "Edward, Emmett, boy, you Cullens know how to make some fine looking young men."

Bella looked like she wanted to cry. Cry or kill, it was hard to tell. She was so red in the face, but it was certainly more than embarrassment.

"I am so sorry. My mom is really not well, and we need to get her home. I am really sorry." She looked to my mother, who responded with a sympathetic nod.

"There is nothing wrong with me, Isabella. Plus, I would love to know more about your loverboy's family. You know, I have always just adored Emmett. What I wouldn't have done to hook him up with Isabella. Of course, Rosalie is pretty hard to top, right?" Renee proceeded to make lewd gestures with her breasts. I could see Bella dying for this to end.

"Mom, please."

Unfortunately, Renee continued, "But when Isabella told me she was involved with Edward here, I thought, well she just hit the hotness jackpot! Emmett is a big, ol' cuddly bear, but Edward is just finger lickin' good. Right?" She squeezed me tighter. "I hope you two are being safe, I am too young to be a grandmother, am I right, Esme? Right?"

I patted her hand with my free one and tried to end this disaster. "Okay, well. Renee, thanks so much for the compliment, but we should really get you home. Would you like to drive with me or Bella? I know you haven't seen her in a while, but I want you to know I am up for any adventure."

"Oh, I would love to ride with you, Edward," Renee cooed and tapped her finger on my lips.

My mother gave me a curious look. "What is she talking about, Edward? You and Bella? What are we missing here?"

Bella stepped forward and took my hand in hers again. I was never going to get tired of that. "Well, you know Edward and I knew each other in Chicago. We, um, hadn't seen each other in a while but meeting up here has kind of rekindled our relationship. My mom is making it much more inappropriate sounding than it is."

"Wow, I would never have guessed it was that serious from the way you interacted with each other last night." My mother was hurt that she was not the first to know. I could tell by the way her jaw tensed as she spoke.

"We had to clear the air last night and then all the drama of the day has kind of brought us closer." This was pretty much the truth, leaving out some details, finger lickin' details.

"Maybe you all could stay and have lunch with us. That's why we're down here, we were going to get some lunch." My mother's eyes held me in my place.

"Yes, Renee looks like she could use some food in her stomach," my father said, helping me regain my footing.

I looked at him. I was not sure what made him hate me so much. Since as far back as I could remember, I have just always been a disappointment. My friends, my clothes, my hair, my choice of college, my grades, my profession, my passions. Everything fell short of his standards. Renee might be a drunk and embarrassing the shit out of Bella right now, but at least the woman loved her, really and truly loved her.

"Mother, I will check in with you when I get back." I let go of Renee and gave my mother a kiss on the cheek. Then flanked by the two Swan women, I walked away without a word to my father.

We walked out of the hotel, and Renee dug through her purse for the valet ticket. Luckily, the valet remembered her and knew exactly which set of keys were hers. Renee was chatting it up with the frightened looking doorman.

I turned to Bella. "Why don't you go get Emmett's car? We'll wait for you down here."

"I'm sorry," she whispered, as if she had something to apologize for.

"Don't apologize at all." I kissed her forehead.

I could hear her sigh. "You don't have to drive with her. I can take her and you can follow us in peace and quiet," she whispered again.

"When am I ever going to get such an uncensored look into the world of Bella Swan? You can't make me give this up." I smiled and rubbed my thumb on her soft cheek and across her sweet lips.

"I deny everything. She has lost many brain cells and her memory is half make believe, so..." She finally gave me a smile. I leaned in and kissed her smiling mouth.

Renee's beat up Ford Taurus pulled up, beginning the next adventure.


	20. Chapter 19 Calls on the Road

BPOV

I wasn't even in Emmett's jeep when my cell phone rang.

"Em."

"You have got to be kidding me." Emmett's frustration was barely restrained.

I rolled my eyes and unlocked the jeep. "Em, please don't freak out on me."

"Don't freak out on you? Yesterday you guys tell me you met through Jake of all people, and today you tell everyone but me that you two are together. Together, together? Is this right? Tell me this is some sort of joke. Something to just distract everyone from Rose," his voice cracked when he said her name.

"Em, I had no idea Edward was your brother when I got here yesterday. We dated in Chicago for a couple months. He wasn't very forthcoming about where he came from or about his family. I figured there was no way in hell he could be related to you, you two couldn't be more different."

"Yeah, we are very different, Bells. Trouble follows my brother wherever he goes. I love him but that is just the facts."

"Well, up until a misunderstanding involving Jake's unexpected visit, we were doing pretty good. Meeting here gave us the chance to clear that misunderstanding up, and I don't know what to tell you, I think I'm in love with him." I couldn't believe I was confessing all of this over the phone and to Emmett.

"Jesus, Bella. He's a fuck up! He fucks up everything eventually. You don't need another disaster for a boyfriend."

My reaction to his words surprised me. Not that I was surprised to be mad about it, but that I was more than mad, I was enraged.

"You know what. Fuck you, Emmett. Fuck you and your fucking high and mighty father, too. You know, you two treat him like he lacks any redeeming qualities whatsoever. God, if someone tells you you're a loser enough you start to believe it, you start to meet their expectations because you know that no matter what you do it will never be good enough. Your brother is one of the kindest and gentlest men I have ever met. He is an extremely talented photographer and he works hard so he can do what he loves. I admire that about him, seeing as how he gets no support from his family, he has stuck with something he cares about and believes in himself enough to not give up."

I was breathing heavy and I was lucky that traffic wasn't too crazy this time of day because I was totally not paying attention to what I was doing. I was in front of Edward and my mother, who I could see from my rearview mirror was talking Edward's ear off.

"Holy shit, Bells. You are in love with him." Emmett's tone was no longer aggressive.

"I guess I really am." I looked into the rearview mirror again and could see Edward laughing at something my mother was telling him. I could only imagine what she was filling his head with. I was in love with Edward. I loved everything about him. I love his smile and his laugh. It felt so good to see him do both. Leave it to my mess of a mother to be responsible for it currently.

"I don't know what to say," Emmett finally said. I almost forgot we were talking.

"Just say you're happy for us and then tell me you found something in all those tapes you've been looking at." Changing the subject seemed like the way to go.

"I'm...happy for you. I just don't want you to get hurt. I don't want him to get hurt either. I love him, too, Bella. You are not the kind of girl he typically goes for. You have potential to do real damage if you walk away." There was real concern in his voice now. He actually seemed worried for Edward. It was kind of sweet.

"I have no plans to hurt him, I promise. Now, the tapes, anything?"

"Nothing. At least no Jake. That's who I'm looking for, right?"

I almost forgot that was what I asked him to do. If Royce and Mr. Hale were behind this it seemed completely unlikely they would have Jacob Black be their lackey.

"I have to tell you something, and I don't want you to freak out. You can't give anything away, okay?" I was worried he might kill Royce or drive to the Hale's estate.

"Yeah, sure. Tell me."

"Did Mike tell you I found a cigarette butt on the balcony?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I think that I can place Royce in the suite. When I went upstairs this morning to look for Rosalie, he opened the door for me. He pulled what I thought at the time was a master key out his pocket and opened the door."

"Okay," Emmett said, not seeing where I was going with this.

"Only, he had no master key. He had _her_ key in his pocket this morning."

"What?" I could tell I now had his attention.

"Relax, please. There's more. As Edward and I were passing by his office before we left, we overheard Mr. Hale in there talking with him." This part was not going to go over well.

"Howard's here?" Emmett was surprised, as surprised as I was when I found out.

"I heard him say something that makes me worried."

Now, I had accidently made Emmett insane. "Bells, what? Did they hear from someone? Oh God, is Rosalie okay? Did they do something to her because we're messing around in this? Mike keeps telling me to stop. That I'm going to get her hurt. Bella, I won't be able to live with myself if something happens to her. I-"

"Emmett. No one has contacted anyone. We have no news on Rosalie. God, you don't think I would have told you that immediately? I heard Mr. Hale say something about being pleased that the wedding postponed and now Royce should wait to be told what to do next. I hate to say it, but it's possible Mr. Hale is part of this. That this may be a scheme to stop the wedding or something."

Nothing. Emmett said nothing in return. If it weren't for his breathing on the line, I would have thought he hung up on me.

"I don't know for sure, but I think they might be setting Royce up to look like the hero. Mr. Hale has him looking into Aro Volturi. But I'm going to beat him to the punch. I'm going to stop at King and Queens on my way back. If I can rule out any connection, then I can make a case that Mr. Hale and Royce set up this whole thing."

Still nothing from Emmett's end.

"She'll never forgive him. She'll probably ask you to leave Seattle, so he can never see her again. Em. Talk to me."

"I don't know if I should kill him or not. If this is them, Royce and Howard, then thank God! At least I know they won't hurt her. But Aro? If this has something to do with Aro, she could be in real danger, Bells. You know how long my office has been trying to make something, anything stick on this guy. He's fucking teflon. Evidence goes missing, witnesses suddenly change their minds about what they saw, people go missing and never return." His voice cracks again.

"I will check into it. I promise. Please, say nothing to anyone. I don't know who to trust anymore except for you and Edward."

"Don't let my brother get too deep in this, Bells. I love him and you love him, but he is a magnet for trouble. He doesn't need any trouble with Aro Volturi." The sincere concern was back.

"I hear you. I'll call you later."

So much to think about. My head was spinning as I drove the two hours to my mother's house. She lasted in the house I grew up in in Forks for about a year after my dad died. Then she decided the small town was too small for her. Too many people watching her self-destruction. Too many concerned and nosy neighbors. Not enough bars to hop. She moved about an hour east to Port Angeles. Bigger city, more anonymity, more bars and liquor stores.

About an hour into the drive my phone buzzed with a text.

_You told Em you love me before you told me? -E_

Crap. Emmett obviously called him after talking to me. I wasn't sure how he felt about what I told Emmett. Maybe I was moving too fast. Hell, we just got back together less than 24 hours ago. I looked in the rearview mirror and his expression was unreadable. I tried to text with one hand.

_It's very dangerous and against the law to text while driving -B_

I looked again and could see him smile as he read my message. So maybe he wasn't as freaked out as I feared. My phone buzzed.

_Your mom is steering for me, see? -E_

I looked back and he was holding both hands up. My mother was leaning over with her hands on the wheel. I swerved a little and then texted again.

_Renee does not need DUI riding in passenger seat -B_

He was laughing now, but his hands were back on the wheel.

_When were you going to tell me? -E_

I hadn't put that kind of thought in it. Emmett had angered me into it. I took a minute to respond. He texted me before I replied.

_Your mom is dying to know what we're talking about. If you don't answer I'll be forced to tell her. -E_

I couldn't tell if he was kidding or not. I didn't need my mom in the middle of this. I was also not going to be pressured to express my feelings via text.

_I don't profess feelings as intense as love over text -B_

I bit my lip and hit send. I looked back at him as he read the message. He looked serious as he typed away. Thank God the 104 was not very busy. My phone buzzed again.

_Neither do I - can't wait to get to your mom's and tell you something face to face -E_

I couldn't stop smiling. Edward wasn't nervous about my feelings for him. It appeared he felt the same way. I looked in my rearview mirror again and both Edward and my mother were laughing. I couldn't get to my mom's fast enough.


	21. Chapter 20 Pictures of You

EPOV

Renee, although totally trashed, was actually kind of likable. She definitely kept me entertained the whole two hours we were in the car together. Bella might have mentioned it was that far away. I didn't realize we were going to be gone this long. I wasn't surprised to get a phone call from Emmett. I was, however, surprised when he didn't threaten to kill me when we got back. Instead, he informed me I better be fucking serious because Bella Swan doesn't fall in love with just anybody. I almost drove off the road when he said that. She played coy when we texted about it, but I was certain she must have told Emmett that she was in love with me. I remembered waking up this morning and thinking this was the best day ever. If all this other shit wasn't going on this would be the mother fucking best day ever!

We pulled up to a little white house on a comfortable little street in Port Angeles. Renee invited us in, even though Bella wanted to go immediately. I didn't want to seem rude, so I made an excuse that I needed to use the bathroom. We walked in and the first thing I saw was Bella's picture. Bella's picture was actually everywhere. Bella when she was a baby, Bella when she was an adorable little girl, Bella as a shy and slightly awkward teen, and Bella the way I know her now. She wasn't kidding when she said photography was her father's hobby. He must have taken hundreds and hundreds of pictures of Bella over the years and Renee displayed almost all of them.

I came out of the bathroom to find Bella pacing around the family room. When she saw me her teeth went right to that bottom lip.

"Ready to go, small bladder?" she teased. Just then, Renee entered the room with a tray full of drinks.

"Mom. We can't stay and visit. We have to go back. I promise I will stop by before I leave."

Renee pretty much ignored her and handed me a tall glass of something that I hoped was just lemonade.

"These pictures of Bella... amazing," I noted as I looked at a one of her that was framed on the fireplace mantel. It was a more recent picture of her. She was on a boat with a fishing rod in her hand. She had a beautifully relaxed smile on her face, and the water behind her was twinkling in the sunlight. The focus was soft and the lighting was perfect. Mr. Swan had a real talent.

"Charlie loved taking pictures of Isabella. With them both gone, I only have the pictures. He's not in them physically, but he's there in every one." She took a long drink of her lemonade. Something told me hers didn't taste the same as mine. She was a very sad and lonely woman. I felt bad for her.

"Taking pictures of Bella is one of my favorite past times, as well."

"Mom. Edward. We need to go. Now." Bella was impatient and growing more impatient by the second.

"Be careful, Isabella, or I will invite him upstairs to see the pictures of you that you wanted me to burn," Renee snapped playfully.

"Oh, those sound very interesting." I wiggled my eyebrows.

"Rosalie is waiting for us." _Ouch. _I almost forgot.

"Renee, it has been lovely. I mean it. I don't think I have had this much fun in a while. I promise we will meet again. Maybe Bella will let me come back when she does." I turned to look at my girl, who was back to biting her lip.

Renee walked us to the car and gave Bella a hug. Just then I thought about my camera.

"Hey, hang on. How about a picture? Mother and daughter. Something maybe to add to the Bella Collection." I unzipped my bag and pulled out my camera.

"Leave it to Isabella to find someone just like her father. It's about time." Renee wrapped an arm around Bella's waist and Bella did the same.

I held my camera up and focused in on their faces. "Smile, Bella," I encouraged dropping the camera to look her in the eye. She blushed and then smiled quite nicely and sincerely. I snapped three.

We said our goodbyes and jumped in Emmett's jeep. Bella was driving, so I tilted my seat back and threw my arm over my eyes.

"Sleepy?" she queried.

"Two hours of laughing can tire anyone out," I responded, not removing my arm.

"Laughing, huh? Laughing at her or with her?"

"Oh, with her, definitely with her." I turned and looked at Bella, smirking slightly.

"I don't even want to know what she said. Please never tell me."

"Oh come on, I was so looking forward to discussing your very interesting love of the Backstreet Boys or about the time you got a perm and you looked like a brown-haired little orphan Annie. Oh, those have got to be the pictures you want burned. Turn around, quick!" I sat up and looked behind us as we drove away from Renee's house.

"You are fucking hilarious. Seattle is a very long ways away by foot. Of course, you could always stay with Renee. She seemed to like you." She was so mad. Cute mad, though. My favorite.

"I think she does like me, but I really want to stay with you since you love me and everything." I put my hand on her thigh and her teeth dug in to her bottom lip and her cheeks turned bright red.

"I was wondering how long it would take you to bring that up." She wouldn't look at me as she spoke.

I righted my seat and turned my body towards her. I reached up and tucked her hair behind her ear. Then I leaned in close. I could hear her breathing hitch. I smiled and tried not to laugh. She smelled so sweet. I took my time and breathed her in.

"I love you, too, Bella Swan," I whispered right into her ear.

Suddenly, there was loud screeching, and I was flying froward, thankfully rescued by my seatbelt. I had instinctively stuck my hand out and ended up hurting myself on the dashboard. Bella had pulled over and slammed on the brakes, nearly killing me.

"Shit, Bella! What are you doing?"

She threw the car in park, unbuckled her seatbelt, and jumped out. I unhooked myself from my lifesaving restraints and opened the door. I leaned against the jeep and watched her pace back and forth on the sidewalk.

"What's the matter? I thought that was something you wanted to hear," I asked, keeping my distance since she looked like she was ready to lash out. _Was I wrong?_ Had I misunderstood our little playful exchange. Maybe she didn't tell Emmett anything, and he just jumped to conclusions.

She stopped pacing and looked at me. Her brown eyes full of passion again.

"I love you, and it scares me. It scares me because one day ago, I loathed you. I never wanted to see you again. Now, I want to be with you all the time. I have all this going on in my head. Trying to figure out what happened to Rosalie and who did what and who said what. Who's lying and who's telling the truth. Am I missing something? Is this bigger and badder than just someone trying to break up Rose and Emmett? I can barely keep it all straight because all I can think about is doing this-"

She was on me. Her arms were wrapped around my neck. Her lips were pressed to mine. I grabbed on to her and held her light frame against mine. I lifted her up and spun, slamming her body against the side of the jeep. We kissed deeply. I have never wanted someone so much in my whole life. We lost ourselves in the moment, and I didn't care. I hoped she didn't care. I grabbed the sides of her face and kept up my loving assault on her mouth. Finally, I pulled back and let myself really breathe.

"Good thing you didn't do that while driving. Making out and driving has to be much more dangerous than texting while driving." I laughed and so did she. I pressed my forehead to hers. "I love you and you love me, and all this other shit is going to work itself out. It is. I don't know any of the answers to your questions, but I want you to know you don't have to over-think you and me. I will be here by your side until this is all over and hopefully forever after."

She didn't say anything, but I could see in her eyes that I had relieved some of her worry. No matter what happened, I couldn't imagine a life without her. Now, I knew we had to go because if this is what Emmett felt for Rosalie, we needed to find her.


	22. Chapter 21 Trust Me

**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews! I love hearing from you guys. It keeps me going! **

BPOV

Kings and Queens was a hugely popular gentleman's club in downtown Seattle. It was run by the Volturi family. Aro and his two brothers, Caius and Marcus. They were insanely wealthy but also extremely dangerous. Those in law enforcement knew them to be mobsters who got away with murder, literally. It was believed they had a hand in many unsavory dealings. Kings and Queens was a giant front for many illegal activities. Okay, _alleged_ illegal activities. Like Emmett had said, no one could make anything stick on these guys. I could remember when I was working in Seattle what a nightmare it was making a case against them.

I wasn't kidding when I told Edward that it was next to impossible to sort all this out in my head. It helped to not be in knots over Edward. I had freed up some space in my head, but it wasn't helping enough. I needed a plan. I couldn't just walk into Kings and Queens and get a private meeting with Aro Volturi. And what would he do? Just tell me that he had abducted my best friend and turn himself in? I didn't know what Royce's plan was, if he even needed one. If he was behind this, the whole Aro thing was just something put out there to throw me off his scent. He was probably planning on doing nothing. Maybe I could check Aro's interest in the necklace. Go in as Mr. Hale's representative, looking to see if Aro would want to purchase the necklace, after the wedding. As far as Aro knew, there was still a wedding happening this weekend. What I knew was I couldn't go dressed in jeans and a t-shirt. I didn't even know if a woman would be taken seriously. I was going to need Edward. The Volturi brothers did not see women as much more than things that made them money and were fun to play with.

"Dear Santa, all I want for Christmas is my girlfriend to talk to me during long, boring drives and for her to stop biting her lip because it makes me want to make her pull over again so I can have my own way with those lips." Edward was again lying back in his seat next to me with his arm over his face.

I smiled and swatted his arm. He was so childlike sometimes. Renee had compared him to my father, but he was actually this weird mix of the qualities I loved about my father and my mother.

"Ow, careful! My hand still hurts from you almost making me fly out the windshield earlier. Why do we always hurt the ones we love?" He lifted his arm off his face and gave me his crooked smile and a wink.

"You are a piece of work, you know that, right?"

"That's why you love me." He shook his head and righted his seat.

"Oh, there are many reasons to love you, I'm not sure that is one of them." I reached over and grabbed his left hand and kissed it.

"This hand is actually the one that hurts," he said, putting his right hand out.

I pushed it away, shaking my head. "Piece. Of. Work."

"So, really what are you thinking about over there? You've been so quiet for so long." He grabbed my hand this time and kissed it.

"Just trying to come up with a plan. Figure out what to do next. I think I might need your help, but I'm worried about getting you too involved. So, I have a problem."

"I'm involved. You can't leave me out now. I'm a big boy, I can do whatever you need." He was such an eager pup. I imagined his eagerness was what got him in so much trouble all the time.

"Problem being you are a trouble magnet according to your brother, and I don't need you in any trouble," I said, eyeing him for his reaction.

"Oh, no. Don't you go there. I have been very helpful so far, haven't I? I mean I helped you figure out the whole Royce wants to be the hero thing, and I've been very insightful about other things. I have the makings of a good detective." He was cute but so naive. I tried to control my smile.

"You have been a very big help, but so far we have been dealing with little fish. The Volturi are big fish."

"The Vol-what?" He had no idea what I was talking about.

"The Volturi brothers. Remember. Royce's assignment? He was looking into Aro Volturi?"

"Yeah, yeah. I remember, I'm on top of things." He nodded sincerely, but I think he forgot about that whole part.

"Edward, Aro Volturi is a very bad man. I don't know if I even want him to know what you look like."

"You doubt me." He let go of my hand and looked out the window. I had hurt his feelings.

_Ugh, why did he have to be such a girl sometimes? _We sat in silence for a moment. Then I tried my hand at his style of humor.

"Dear Santa, all I want for Christmas is my boyfriend to not be mad at me for wanting to protect him and his very hot body that I want to spend the rest of my life either looking at or touching, preferably without clothes on."

He tried to not smile by covering his mouth with his hand, but I saw it.

"You want me to trust you, but I need you to trust me. This is what I do. I don't tell you how to take pictures or assume that I would have any clue about how to do what you do. If I think a situation is dangerous, I am probably right. I am not doubting you. I am trying to keep everyone safe. That is what I do."

He put his hand down and took mine back in his. "I trust you, Bella. Completely. That's why I know that if you need my help, you will come up with a plan that will get us in and out with no trouble."

"Well, currently I do not have that plan." I sighed and focused back on the highway in front of me.

"So, tell me what we're dealing with at least." He was not going to give up.

"Aro is a mobster, who runs a very swanky gentlemen's club downtown. It's a front for a bunch of illegal activities. Prostitution, gambling, drugs, you name it they have their hand in it. Nobody's ever been able to take him or his two brothers down and trust me your brother has tried." I gave him the condensed version, leaving out the extortion, disappearances, and murder.

"And we think maybe he did this because he wanted the necklace he lost in the auction to Mr. Hale?"

"Well, he's a pretty damn good scapegoat. He makes a really good suspect. He has means, he has motive, it has his kind of flair."

"So maybe it was him." Edward raises an eyebrow at me.

"We _so_ do not want it to be him. Then all those threats are for real. Then the chance that Rosalie can be killed increases exponentially." The thought of Aro actually being involved in this made my stomach hurt.

"Oh." Edward got very quiet. Finally, the seriousness of this whole thing seemed to hit him.

"What I want to do is rule him out. I want to find nothing linking him to this except for the fact that they both bid on this necklace. How I'm going to do that is what I'm working on." I squeezed his hand reassuringly.

"If anyone can figure it out, it's you." He tried to smile, but his lips didn't make it all the way up.

We were getting close to the city, and I still only had one plan. We would need to pretend we were representing Mr. Hale and looking into Aro's interest in the necklace. We would need a change of clothes, and I did not want to go all the way to the hotel, which was on the other side of the city. I saw a sign for an upscale outlet mall. At least we could get something that looked right for less, just like the sign said.

"I hope you are not a difficult shopper," I warned as I pulled off the highway.

"Me? Difficult? Baby, I'm easy. You know that better than anyone." Edward could always make me smile that was for sure.


	23. Chapter 22 Kings and Queens

**A/N: Warning - if you haven't seen the movie Fight Club I totally spoil the whole movie in this chapter. Sorry, Edward made me do it.**

Chapter 22 - Kings and Queens

EPOV

"I look damn good, what do you think, baby?" I said, stepping out of the dressing room with my new dark navy suit, crisp white shirt, no tie. Bella shook her head and laughed. It was good to hear that. She had been so serious in the car. Deep in thought, it was making me anxious.

"You look very good. Hand me the tags, I'll go buy it." She put her hand out and waited patiently for once.

"You are not buying this for me. I can buy my own clothes," I protested.

"I'm making you get them, I can buy them," she argued stubbornly.

"Nice try. I am the one that is demanding to be a part of this. I will buy my own suit, thank you."

Picking out something for me to wear was a million times easier than finding something for her to wear. No wonder she never wore dresses. Dress shopping sucked. She finally settled on some short sleeved dress in that blue that I loved on her. She looked hot but not too hot. She said something about needing to be professional but distracting. She was definitely distracting me with the plunging neckline that allowed everyone a teasing peek at the tops of those perfect milky white breasts of hers. I couldn't wait to get her out of that dress later tonight. Not what I should be thinking about right now, but that was unfortunately where my hormonal male mind wandered. We had to get her some shoes, some make up, and some stuff to do her hair. Being a girl seemed like such a hassle. We got back in Emmett's jeep, and Bella proceeded to put on some make up and brush out her hair. I started running through the plan with her, as I paced outside by her open car door.

"So, do I get to pick out my fake name? I want to be Jason Bourne," I said.

Bella stopped applying some eyeliner to roll her eyes at me. "You cannot be Jason Bourne, Edward."

"Okay, no Matt Damon. What about... William Wallace?"

"Braveheart, really?" She set down her makeup and cocked her head while looking at me. "Could you be serious for like a minute please?"

"You knew that? Wow, no wonder I love you. You like sports and guy movies, you're awesome." I smiled and she smiled back. "Fine, how about Tyler Durden?" I wanted a name that made me feel like a badass.

"Did you make that up or is that someone from a movie again?"

"Oh, didn't know that one, huh? It's Brad Pitt's character in Fight Club, who really is Ed Norton's crazy ass alter ego, but you don't know that until the end of the movie. The whole time you're watching it you think they're two different people; but then, at the end, you find out Ed Norton was nuts and they show you all these scenes where he was talking to himself, thinking he was talking to Tyler. It was fucking crazy. You never see it coming. Did you see it? Oh man, I totally just ruined it for you, sorry." Bella was looking at me with her mouth slightly open.

"Whoa, you need to talk less. If this is going to work, you cannot just go all ADD on me and start rambling about shit." She slammed the little mirror on the sun visor shut and put the visor back in place.

"Sorry. I can do this, I swear." I held on to the door and looked down at her getting a good look at those milky white - God, I am ADD. "I should drive don't you think? People should see us pull up with me in the driver's seat."

She looked up at me with a furrowed brow. She twisted her mouth up and then stepped out of the jeep rubbing up against me as she did. "You're right."

I grabbed her arm as she started to walk away and pulled her back to me. Her cheeks turned red on cue.

"You can't just brush past me and think I'm just going to take that when you look like you do right now." I ran a finger from her jawline down her neck, and slowly down to where the dress ended right in between my two favorite things.

Bella's body responded just the way I wanted it to. Her chest heaved, and she licked her bottom lip before biting down on it softly. I leaned in and tilted her face up to mine. I kissed her right cheek and then left. I could hear her breathing hitch again. I kissed her mouth soft and sweet. She welcomed me in, and I never wanted to stop. She pulled back first.

"We have to go," she whispered, but I could sense she didn't want to stop either. I let her go and we both got in the jeep feeling slightly light headed.

Kings and Queens was not a huge establishment, but I guessed it looked smaller on the outside than in. They had covered area by the front doors and valet parking, obviously to help protect the privacy of the gentlemen coming in and out of there. Bella was in charge and had made it clear that I was only to talk if she gave me the cue. Bella handled the bouncer at the front door quite well.

She began by tossing her hair over her shoulder and then biting that bottom lip. She turned on this twinkle in her eye. "We were wondering if Mr. Aro Volturi was here to discuss some business with representatives from Hale Enterprises? We only need a few minutes of his time, please?" She was being distracting and it was working. The big guy could only smile and pulled out a phone.

"Heidi, come on up to the front please." He smiled back at Bella. "Someone will be with you in a moment."

A tall blond dressed in a very tight business suit made her way over to the bouncer guy, who was still ogling my girlfriend. They whispered back and forth. I didn't know they made business suit skirts that short. Wow. I wondered how she sat down in that thing. I wondered what you could see when you stood behind her while she was sitting. I wondered if she was wearing anything under that skirt.

_Ah, blasted ADD!_ I had to do better than this.

She walked over to us. "You're here from Hale Enterprises for Mr. Volturi? Is there a reason no one called to set up an appointment? Mr. Volturi does not usually entertain _drop ins_." The way she said it made it clear we were not following proper protocol.

Bella cleared her throat, the cue. Now it was my turn. Women were my speciality. I stuck my hand out and put on my most charming smile. I could be very disarming when I wanted to be.

"Tyler Durden, Miss ...?"

"Miss Bolden," she responded, taking my hand.

I shook her hand, taking it gently in both of mine and never letting my eyes leave hers. "Miss Bolden. My apologies for the unexpected visit, but this is sort of something Mr. Hale wanted to keep as quiet as possible. We mean no insult to Mr. Volturi by our brazen appearance or assume he can make time for just anyone, but we promise we are here to make him an offer I think will make him glad he took the time to see us."

"What specifically is this offer in regards to?" she asked, shooting a quick glance in Bella's direction.

"My assistant and I are here to see what interest Mr. Volturi still has in something Mr. Hale acquired a few months ago. I'm sure he will know what that means." I smiled and left it at that.

"Well, Mr. Durden. If you would like to set up an appointment, I am sure Mr. Volturi would love to meet with you at _his_ convenience."

"I would do that if this wasn't something of a _one time_ offer. Mr. Hale is aware that Mr. Volturi had an interest in this item and wants to give him the first chance at it otherwise, it is not something that we foresee having any difficulty selling." I had her interest piqued, she eyed me carefully.

"Just a moment. If you like, we could find you a seat in the main area while you wait." She stepped back and led us into the club.

Everything about Kings and Queens was upscale. If it weren't for the stage and stripper pole, it could have easily been mistaken for some exclusive nightclub in LA or New York City. The room was dimly lit with giant chandeliers and some sconces that hung on the warmly painted walls. The tables and chairs were all draped in red. The immense bar against one wall was dark mahogany with a black granite counter top. The small circular stage had one stripper pole and there were mirrored french doors on the wall behind it that must be where the girls entered from. On the opposite side of the room from the stage was what must be a semi private VIP area. It had a plush red velvet banquette that ran from one end of the space to the other. There was a half wall that separated that space from the rest of the room. It wasn't my kind of strip club, no drunk guys whooping it up with fistfuls of one dollar bills. The clientele here was also upscale - businessmen, professionals. Lots of guys in suits, and they were not tipping anyone with singles. The dancers here made good money. There was a girl on stage, dancing to Sex on Fire by Kings of Leon. She was also not like anything I saw at the strip clubs I'd been to. She looked like something out of a Victoria Secret's catalogue. Bella pinched the back of my arm, quickly making me divert my eyes from the stage.

"Ouch," I quietly breathed at her.

She gave me the most exasperated look. I better keep my eyes off the stage. Heidi led us to a booth to the side and then left to go check with Aro. I could tell Bella was nervous, as soon as Heidi left she was biting her lip and wringing her hands.

"So far so good, huh?" I whispered once we were alone.

"Let's just hope their not back there calling Hale Enterprises inquiring about the legitimacy of one Mr. Tyler Durden," she whispered back. She was really worried.

"It's going to be fine. Good music at least." I smiled trying to get her to calm down.

"If you look up at that stage again I will gouge your eyes out as soon as we leave here, you know that, right?"

"Bella, you are the only woman I ever need to see naked again." I put my hand on her knee under the table, and her cheeks turned the color of the table cloth.

A very scantily clad waitress came over to take our drink order. Bella shook her head, and I ordered a martini that I was sure was going to cost more than any drink I have ever bought in my life. Since I couldn't look at the stage, I checked out the other people in the room. I watched them interact with the girls walking around and with each other. This place was definitely more than just a strip joint. There were many other things that went on here. My drink came and I barely took two sips before Heidi was back, this time with a man.

"Mr. Volturi will see you now. Demetri will show you the way." We exited the booth and followed this new guy, who looked like he could kill a person with his bare hands. Intimidating, to say the least. He led us through some doors and down a hallway. We passed by some rooms, each door marked with a word written in some other language, Italian or French maybe. We went through another door and down some stairs. There were two ways out at the bottom of the stairs. We went right instead of left. As Demetri opened the door, the left side door opened and a couple of well dressed men came out laughing. One man was holding what looked like poker chips. He quickly slipped them in his pocket when he saw us. We went down another hallway and stopped about halfway.

Demetri knocked on the door twice and a voice from the other side shouted, "Enter!"


	24. Chapter 23 Aro

**A/N: Thanks for following along. Please review and tell me what you think...**

BPOV

I was trying to stay positive. I was trying to convince myself that this was not the biggest mistake I have ever made. I wanted to believe that we could pull this off and make it out in one piece. I was trying, but as soon as we stepped into Aro's massive office and I saw him look at Edward, I began to panic. If Edward didn't pull this off perfectly, there was a chance that something bad could happen. If they already checked and knew that Edward is not who he said he was, we were dead. A world without Edward was not a world worth being a part of. What had I done? Why didn't I get someone else to come with me? I started thinking I should have confronted Royce, forced him to come with me. Better his head on a chopping block than Edward's.

Aro was not a large man, but he had presence. He was slim and had long dark hair that he had slicked back off his face. He wore a black suit, black dress shirt, and black tie. It made his eyes almost seem black as well.

"Mr. Durden, I assume?" Aro's voice had a slight Italian accent.

Edward put on his enchanting smile and nodded his head in greeting. "Yes, sir, Mr. Volturi. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate you seeing us without any notice."

Aro got up out of his chair and moved from behind his desk. He took Edward's hand in his.

"I understand you have a proposition for me. Considering the phone call I got this morning from a mutual friend, I think I know what this is about. But with this lovely lady standing here, I can only hope maybe it is something else." Aro let go of Edward and moved closer to me. He licked his lips, almost like I was making him hungry. It was very intimidating. Someone had called him today, maybe Royce was following up.

"Isabella Dwyer. I'm Mr. Durden's assistant." I put out my hand for him to shake, but he took it instead and, staring at my breasts, kissed it.

"Isabella," he drew out the sounds in my name with his accent. "Oh, I can imagine all the hard work you would do for me as my assistant. Mr. Durden is a very lucky man." He let go of my hand and turned to Edward.

"So, if you are not here to bring me a new girl for my club, I can only assume you are here regarding the necklace." Aro cut right to the chase.

"Well, Mr. Hale had every intention of donating the necklace to a museum or to someone's collection after his daughter's wedding, but then he thought perhaps it was too valuable to just give up." Edward was doing a really good job. I was impressed with his ability to stay so calm.

"Ah, he saw the almighty dollar signs and he, like I, could not resist." Aro moved back behind his desk and sat down. He folded his hands in front of his on his desk and looked back at me smiling. I could feel his eyes linger on particular parts of my body. I could see that Edward noticed as well. I saw his jaw tense and his hand kept opening and closing into a fist. He could not let that bother him, he had to just deal with it like I was.

"Mr. Hale heard you had interest in the necklace at the auction and wanted to see if there was still any," Edward said, sounding less relaxed than before.

"Oh, Mr. Durden!" He laughed, but it was dark and made my stomach turn. "If I had any interest in that necklace, it would already be mine. I might have lost at auction, but when I really want something, I just take it. It's kind of my way of doing things." He looked back at me with an evil smile. I smiled back, trying to look like I found him exciting instead of nauseating.

Edward started to open his mouth, but I interrupted him. Aro was not going to buy the necklace back from Howard. He would just take it. Maybe that is what he was doing. Maybe this was his way of letting us know he had Rosalie. I couldn't be sure, but I just knew it was time to go.

"Well, thank you for your time, Mr. Volturi. We will let Mr. Hale know he should look elsewhere. You have an amazing club here. We hope to return for pleasure next time instead of business." I gave him a playful grin.

He stood up and walked around the desk again. I saw Edward tense, but he didn't move, thank God.

Aro took my hand again and put it to his lips. "Isabella, you are welcome to pleasure yourself here anytime." He stared into my eyes almost hypnotically. "I would love to show you around when you can stay longer. We have so much more to offer than you were able to see in the lounge. Private rooms with everything your heart desires. I'd love to show you the Domini room. I could see you and I having hours of fun in there." He still held my hand, and I had a feeling that there is no way in hell I would have any fun in a _domini_ room with Aro Volturi. I think I would rather be beaten and whipped. Suddenly the hair on my neck stood straight, maybe that was what happened in that room. I didn't want to think about it.

I tried to keep a friendly smile on my face, "I look forward to it, Mr. Volturi." He smiled, bowed his head, and let go of my hand. He then shook hands with Edward who was not holding it together as well as he was when we first walked in. I started to feel more anxious if that was possible.

Aro looked up at the man who escorted us down here. "Demetri, I need to talk to you for a moment. Tyler, Isabella, I assume you can figure your way back upstairs on your own?"

"Not a problem. Thank you for meeting with us." Edward placed his hand on my lower back and gently nudged me out the door. I was glad to have him between me and Aro's wandering eyes.

We hurriedly walked down the hall to the stairway. I suddenly felt like we were exiting an evil dungeon. I would be happy when Edward was out of this place.

"Jesus, Bella, why did you use your real first name? I almost had a heart attack when you introduced yourself." He leaned into me, keeping little space between us. I looked back at his face, which was dark and anxious.

"It's fine. I was nothing to him but something to fantasize about. He'll forget all about me as soon as he sees someone prettier."

"Ha. If you could only see yourself right now. You have _no_ idea." He was starting to sound angry.

We got to the door, and he continued to push me with his hand. I stopped on the first step.

"Maybe you should go up while I look around a little before we go. I'll meet you outside." I could check this other hallway, feign I was looking for a bathroom. Then I could look around upstairs for a couple minutes.

Edward grabbed my arm and held on tightly. "You are not going anywhere in this place without me." His voice was rough, not normal for him.

"I'm a big girl, Edward. Let me do my job. I will meet you outside. Your part in this is over." I couldn't believe he was going to go all overprotective on me.

"I don't care if you are a black belt in karate and are able to kill people by pinching their necks or something. You are not leaving my sight until we are out of here. Possession seems to be something very enticing to Mr. Volturi. He looked at you like you were something he definitely wanted to possess."

"You're cute when you're acting all manly and shit, but I am the police officer here. You are not. I am going to look around. You are going to go outside where it is safe." I was getting a little more than annoyed. Why couldn't he just listen to me when I needed him to?

"Argue all you want. I am not leaving you here. Deal with it." His green eyes were hard. I could see he wasn't going to budge.

"Fine, but you have to do what I say if there is any sign of trouble. Do you understand me? I can't do what I need to do if I'm worried about you." I relented but was not happy about it.

"Fine." He still looked mad, but his face softened slightly as he released my arm from his grasp.

I tried the knob on the other door. It was locked. That figured.

"Let's go upstairs and look around and then go." I could hear the anxiety in Edward's voice.

We got upstairs to find the hallway empty. There were several rooms with Italian names written on the doors. The first one we past said "Domini". My curiosity got the best of me. I grabbed the knob, pushing the door open slightly. Luckily, it was currently unoccupied. The room was the size of my bedroom back home. The furnishings, however, were not something you would find anywhere I had ever lived. There was a bed, covered in black leather. Attached by chains to the headboard and footboard were leather cuffs. On the wall to the side were various "tools", I didn't even want to know what someone used them for. I slammed the door shut while my chest heaved.

_Yeah, I would not want to be in that room with Aro, or anyone for that matter._

"We are getting the hell out of here!" Edward was livid. His eyes wildly searched up and down the hallway. He grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the door.

I yanked my hand from his grasp. "Stop it. Would you please relax?"

Edward kept his voice down, but he was reeling. "Relax? Bella, did you see what that room was? This place is wicked. Let's get the fuck out of here. The fact that he was even entertaining thoughts of doing things to you in there makes me want to go down there and kill him. I need to get out of here."

I looked at him and could see that he wasn't kidding. He was as worried about me as I was for him. I was about to tell him we could go when something caught my eye. I realized that all along the hallway, between doors, were paintings. Paintings of woman, erotic paintings. The one behind Edward made my mouth drop open. It was a painting of a beautiful woman, naked from the waist up laying on a bed with her strawberry blond hair splayed out around her head. She had a finger in her mouth and was staring seductively at us. _Holy shit._ There was a small brass plaque under the heavy gold gilded frame. _Tanya_.


	25. Chapter 24 Lock

EPOV

I seriously thought I was going to throw up. The thought of that sadistic sicko doing things to Bella, hell, just wanting to do creepy, S&M things to her, made my blood boil. One look into that room and I thought I might run back down the stairs and rip his head off. If the need to get her out there hadn't been so overwhelming, I might have done it.

Bella was fighting me again. The woman had a chip on her shoulder the size of Alaska. She would not let me protect her. It was very frustrating. She was staring at me, but then her eyes drifted behind me and I suddenly worried that someone was standing there, so I spun around. There was no one there, but she was still standing there with her mouth hanging open and her brown eyes fixated.

"Bella?" I tried to get her attention. I turned again to look at what she was gaping at.

I looked at the painting on the wall and immediately knew why she was speechless all of the sudden. There was Tanya the girl from the hotel. The Rosalie look-a-like. Now, I really wanted to throw up. It was now very possible that Aro Volturi had Rosalie. Fuck. I grabbed Bella's hand and yanked her down the hallway, through the bar, and out the front door. I didn't even acknowledge the giant bouncer dude. I handed the valet my ticket and kept hold of Bella's wrist while I waited for the damn jeep. They were very quick about it, and I nearly shoved Bella into the passenger seat. I started to pull her seatbelt on for her and she pushed me away.

"I got it! God!" She was breathing hard though.

I ran around the other side and threw a couple bucks at the valet. I drove like a bat out of hell headed for anywhere but there.

"Pull over," she demanded. "Edward, pull over! You don't even know where you're going."

"I'm getting as far from that fucking place as possible. Holy fuck!" I swerved just barely missing a car that I pulled out in front of.

"Edward, you are going to get us killed. Pull over and let me drive."

"Just tell me where to go. For once in your life can you just let someone else be in the driver's seat?" I meant it figuratively, but it worked literally as well. I was quite clever even under so much stress. Usually when I was stressed I was not as funny. I tended to be quiet and serious. Bella was always quiet when she was stressed. I hate it when she was stressed and I was not and she was quiet and I wanted to talk.

_Fucking ADD, still going strong._

She was gripping the armrest tightly. Her knuckles were white. I eased off the gas. Now that we were away from there, I was beginning to feel the tension leave my body.

"You need to go east when you can," she finally spoke, her voice more neutral.

We drove in silence probably because neither one of us could believe what we saw. What would the chances be that a woman who worked for Hale Tower also worked for Kings and Queens? Tanya was the link we were hoping not to find. I wanted this to all be Royce, the idiot ex-boyfriend who was stupid jealous of my perfect brother. I wanted it to be my brother's pompous asshole future father-in-law. I wanted it to be anyone but Aro Volturi. I couldn't stop thinking about the way he looked at Bella until her phone rang.

"Em," she answered. My brother was going to die when he found out that Aro Volturi might be behind this. If that monster had Bella, I didn't know what I would do.

"Oh god," she breathed. I felt every muscle in my body tense at those words. "Em, listen it's going to be okay." She was quiet again. Then she tried to be reassuring, "At least we know now when and where. We just do what they say and we'll get her back. I swear. It's going to be okay."

I put my hand on hers. I was so glad that she was here with me. I could touch her and that Aro guy would never touch her again. Rosalie was perhaps not as lucky.

"Edward and I should be there in fifteen minutes or so. No, we're done. I promise. I won't." She closed her eyes and squeezed my hand. I didn't know what he was telling her and it was driving me crazy. "We'll see you soon. Bye." She snapped her phone shut.

"What was all that about?" I asked.

"They left a tape at the front desk for Emmett." She pressed the top of the phone to her forehead and still had her eyes closed.

"What did it say?" I had to ask to keep her going.

"It said they knew what we were up to. They knew we were snooping around. They said they warned us," her voice cracked, and I could see one solitary tear fall down her cheek.

I squeezed her hand tighter. Bella didn't cry. "What does that mean? What did they do?"

She wiped her cheek with the back of her hand and opened her eyes. She cleared her throat. "They sent a lock of her hair. Said that wasn't all that was going to get cut. Then gave instructions about when and where to bring the necklace."

"Shit." I didn't know what else to say. Fuck. Fuck also would have worked. We fucked things up. Fucking Tanya has been on top of us this whole time. I prayed that our little visit to Aro didn't fuck things up even more. I knew that's what Bella was internally beating herself up over right now.

"Turn left at the next light," she directed me in that emotionless voice she was using earlier this morning.

"This is not your fault. You know that right? I mean, you were trying to help her. They just cut some hair. Hair grows back. She's going to be fine. Maybe they're just bluffing about cutting other things."

She didn't answer me right away. She was looking out the window. It looked like she was trying to stop herself from losing it completely. Strong Bella. Always trying to be Strong Bella.

"Funny you didn't think Aro was bluffing when we were standing in his fucking dungeon office a couple minutes ago. You couldn't get me out of there fast enough. You know what he would have done to me if he could have. You know -" She stopped, pulling her hand from mine. She doubled over in her seat and covered her head with her arms. I put my hand on her back. I would do anything to take this away from her but there was nothing I could do.

We made it back to the hotel and walked in silence to the lobby. She opened her phone and called Emmett. He was in my parents' room and told us to come on up. As we walked to the elevator, I looked over at the front desk. There was Tanya helping a man and woman surrounded by suitcases. I tried not to stare, but I couldn't help it. Part of me just wanted to run over there and grab her by the throat, make her tell us where the hell Rosalie was. But she was probably just a pawn in this game, someone Aro used to get what he wanted.

We walked to the elevators, and I grabbed Bella's hand as we stood amongst the crowd. She was staring at the ground and I was worried about what was going on in her head. As the doors closed she leaned her body into mine and rested her head on my arm. I let go of her hand and wrapped my arm around her, pulling her closer. Strong Bella needed A Little Bit Stronger Edward. I kissed the top of her head and rested my chin there as we rode up to my parents' suite. For once in my life, I was looking forward to having my whole family around me. Safe and alive.


	26. Chapter 25 Rose

**A/N: Bella's version of the last chapter with a little extra.**

BPOV

Edward was completely undone as we left Kings and Queens. I thought he was going kill us before we even got out of the parking lot. He would not pull over and let me drive. I wasn't completely sure how I got in the passenger seat in the first place. He had literally thrown me in the car and then tried to secure my seatbelt for me like I was two years old or something. I decided if I calmed down maybe he would calm down. I told him where to go and finally a few minutes later I could see his jaw unclench. My phone rang, it was Emmett.

"Em."

Emmett was a wild mess. He was yelling at me through his tears. "Bells, you have to come back! You have to come back! Please don't fucking do anything else! They fucking know! They sent us her hair. They cut a lock of hair and said that wasn't all they cut. Fuck!"

"Oh, god." Aro was going to kill my best friend if he knew why we were there. I just fucked up. I didn't think it could be him, I wanted it to not be him. "Em, listen it's going to be okay."

"They gave us a drop off point and time. Tomorrow morning during the morning rush. We have to put it on the monorail." He was breathing hard. I could hear his mom or maybe Alice in the back trying to soothe him.

I tried to be reassuring. "At least we know now when and where. We just do what they say and we'll get her back. I swear. It's going to be okay."

"I need you here and out of trouble. Where are you two?"

"Edward and I should be there in fifteen minutes or so."

"We should never have looked into this, Bells. I'll never forgive myself. I should have listened to Mike. He was right. I am such an idiot! Please tell me you won't do anything else. Promise me." He sounded so heartbroken. I couldn't even bring myself to tell him we had been to see Aro. He would freak.

"No, we're done. I promise. I won't." I closed my eyes and squeezed Edward's hand. "We'll see you soon. Bye." I shut my phone and pressed it to my forehead as Edward asked me what Emmett had said. I had done this. I had tried to unravel this mystery, but I instead put my friend's life at risk. I didn't know what to do anymore. Edward tried to make me feel better, but it wasn't working. I would never forgive myself, just like Emmett said. He wasn't the one who went into enemy territory and made Aro Volturi aware that we must have suspected him. If he was trying to get the necklace, he knew we weren't really trying to sell it. He knew we were lying. I'm not sure how we made it out of there. I can't believe I let Edward get mixed up in this. We could not get back to Chicago fast enough. I wanted Edward as far away from all of this as possible. I needed him. I needed him above everyone else to be safe and to be with me. Forever.

We got to the hotel and headed up to see Emmett. We entered the crowded elevator and I let Edward hold me. Be strong for me, because I was tired. I was beaten. I was done.

Emmett was not going to have us do anything. We were going to deliver the necklace where they told us, when they told us. We were going to sit in this hotel all day tomorrow waiting for Rose to come home. We would hopefully not be waiting in vain. We would hopefully see her again with a little less hair but fully intact. Beautiful Rose. Perfect Rose.

The elevator stopped several times. People got off, a few got on. We stopped at Floor 20, and I sighed as a man and woman holding hands got off. I watched them walk down the hall all carefree and happy. They were probably going to their room to get ready to go out to dinner and then they'd come back to their room and make love. Enjoying each other with no worries. I was green with envy.

Then I saw him. Royce. Coming out of a room and our eyes locked. He stopped coming out of the room and dashed back in. I sprung from my spot and threw my arm out to stop the doors from closing.

I banged on the door and started making a scene.

"Open this fucking door, Royce! I swear to God I will kick it down and then all the rest of the doors in this hallway!"

The couple who had gotten off before me were hurrying to their room looking back at me a few times with worried faces.

Royce opened the door and tried to speak, "Bella, what the hell is your prob-"

Before he could say anything else I was shoving my fist in his throat. He grabbed his neck, stunned by the blow. He couldn't speak, which might be a problem since I needed some fucking answers. The listlessness I was feeling in the elevator was all gone. I was jacked up and Royce was going to pay the price for all the rage I was feeling. I flicked him in the head and then punched him in the stomach. Edward was standing behind me wide eyed but didn't try to stop me.

I grabbed Royce's arm and pinned it behind his back. I slammed him against a wall until he finally found his balls. He tried to turn back around and push me off of him. I let go of him for a second and then high kicked him right in the face. His head fell back and he wobbled. I grabbed him and shoved him on the bed. That's when I noticed it was covered in fucking rose petals. There were rose petals everywhere. There were petals and unlit candles everywhere. Dozens and dozens of unlit candles. It was like something out some stupid romantic chick flick. I couldn't help it. Royce was laying there, sprawled out on the king size bed, rose petals stuck to his bleeding face. I started laughing. Laughing like I thought I might never stop.


	27. Chapter 26 Badass Bella

EPOV

I have never been so turned on in my whole life. I was dating fucking Angelina Jolie. Badass Angelina, not that weird curly-haired Mighty Heart Angelina, but the Laura Croft/Mr. and Mrs. Smith/Wanted Angelina. The one who kicked ass and looked smoking hot while doing it. There was my Bella in her high heels and flowy girl dress, beating the shit out of Royce. Kung fu shit, kicking and punching, pushing him on the bed. I wanted to push her on the bed and take her right there. _Damn._

I could only stand there with my mouth agape. She had scared the hell out of me when she bolted out of the elevator. I couldn't figure out what happened until she was banging on the door like a madwoman. Now, she was standing at the foot of the bed laughing. Laughing like I've never seen her laugh before. Crying laughing, doubled over laughing. Royce was on the bed with rose petals. It looked like a rose bush vomited all over him, all over this room.

I started laughing as well. It was quite a sight. I looked at Bella, and she shook with laughter. She swept her hair away from her face and took a deep breath. Strong Bella was back, stronger than ever.

"Is this where you tried to seduce her last night? Was this your big plan?" she said through giggles.

"I am going to have you arrested, you bitch!" Royce spat. He wiped the flowers off his face and scooted to the other end of the bed out of Bella's reach.

"Did you have anything to do with this Royce? Did you and Howard do this? I need to know. I know you two are up to something. I know you want this wedding postponed indefinitely. But I am telling you, I will hurt you in ways that are slow and painful if you don't start talking." She raised an eyebrow and looked absolutely lethal.

"I'm not afraid of you," he responded unconvincingly. I couldn't blame him though. Hell, I'd be scared of her, too, if I didn't want to have sex with her so badly.

"Just answer me, Royce. What have you and Howard been up to?"

"We aren't up to anything," he said, sliding off the bed and keeping a good distance between him and Bella.

Bella stepped towards that side of the bed, and he immediately looked like a caged animal. He looked at me, trying to determine his chances of getting past me before she could catch him. I set down the shopping bags and my camera bag that I had been holding all this time. I crossed my arms in front of me like a security guard, daring him with my eyes to try to get around me before Badass Bella got her claws in him.

"Bella, I love her. I have always loved her." His face changed, softened almost. "Do I want to stop this wedding? Yes. Does Howard agree with me that I am a better choice? Yes. Would I ever hurt her, cause her pain or fear? No. Never. If you think I did this, then you don't understand what it means to be in love."

Bella seemed to believe him, because her body visibly relaxed. "Why did you have a key to her room this morning?"

Royce wiped his bleeding lip on his sleeve. He looked so...sad.

"I've been carrying around the key since she moved in here. I had myself convinced I could win her back. I never went in there until this morning when you told me to. I swear. I had it just because I could. This, this was our room, though." He grabbed a handful of petals and threw them up in the air.

"Do you think Howard had anything to do with her going missing? Do you think he would interfere that way?" Bella asked calmly.

Royce looked at her and shook his head. "What makes you think that?"

Bella looked angry again. "We overheard him in your office. Saying at least you got the wedding postponed and for you to wait for him to tell you what to do next. Care to explain?"

Royce laughed. "Howard's glad that the wedding's been delayed. He doesn't think Rosalie should be marrying someone so obviously below her social standing."

Just when I was starting to sympathize with the guy, he has to insult my brother. I let my arms fall to my side and took a step towards him. I think I almost growled. Bella took a step to put herself between me and him.

"So do you think he played a part in this?" Bella asked slightly aggravated.

"A part in holding her hostage? Are you serious?" Now he was laughing heartily. "You think he would let anyone touch a hair on her head? He had nothing to do with this, Bella. He wanted me to help him figure it out before you and Emmett figured it out, though. He wanted to be able to tell Rosalie that we were the ones that found her and saved her. He did not have her abducted. If he thought he could just whisk her away from Emmett, he would have done it a long time ago not the week before the wedding. Not after he spent so much damn money."

"What about Aro? What did you find out?" Bella again seemed to believe him and was moving on.

"I made a couple calls this morning, trying to find out if people I knew who know him thought he was still interested in the necklace. I didn't get very far. Nobody wanted to speak for him and seemed nervous even talking to me about him."

"Shit." Bella exhaled sharply. "Tanya, at the front desk. How long has she worked here?"

"Tanya? What does she have to do with anything?" Royce looked genuinely confused.

"Please stop answering my questions with a question," Bella sighed.

"She _hates_ that by the way," I chimed in.

Royce glared at me for a moment. He ran his hand through his slicked back hair. "I think she's been here a month or so. Jessica was training her for a couple weeks. I believe she has been on her own for about two weeks. So, yeah, about a month."

"Did you know she's connected to the Volturi brothers?"

"How so?" he asked.

Bella's shoulders tensed.

"That's a question, dumbass," I reminded him.

"No. I didn't know that. How is she connected?" Royce spit out quickly. He's a fast learner.

"She works at Kings and Queens, I think. Or at least she used to work there, maybe. Shit." Bella turned towards me. She rested her forehead on my chest and stared down at the floor. I gently stroked her hair.

"If Aro has her, do you think he'll release her tomorrow? You said this morning that if they wanted money they might ask for more before giving her back. Do you still think that? I mean, they won't hurt her anymore, do you think?" The concern in his voice was clear. Royce King was total prick but he really did care about Rosalie. He had set this room up last night with a hundred fucking candles and rose petals, hoping she would walk away from Emmett for him. He probably came in here to think about her after hearing she might have been hurt.

Bella didn't turn around to face him, instead she sidestepped around me and started walking towards the door. "I don't know, I really don't know anymore."

She opened the door and I quickly snatched up our bags. I looked at Royce, who had tears welling in his eyes.

I felt like I should say something. "She's going to be fine. She'll be back tomorrow, and my brother is going to treat her like a queen the rest of her life. He is a good man, the best man I know. Not rich but a good, honest man, with a heart of solid fucking gold. She deserves that, doesn't she?"

I threw it out there not expecting an answer, but as I turned to leave, he responded softly, "More than anyone."


	28. Chapter 27 Flawed

**BPOV**

This wasn't Royce or Howard's doing. _Damn it._ I really wanted it to be them. But they would never have cut Rosalie's hair. Royce was right, her father never would harm a hair on her head. She was grabbed by someone, knocked out. Mr. Hale would never do that to her. As much as I hated to admit it, Royce wouldn't hurt her either because he was in love with her. Really in love with her, even though she was in love with Emmett. I almost felt bad for him. Almost.

I walked back to the elevator. The people who heard the racket and dared to peek out their doors were now quickly hiding back in their rooms when they saw me. I wouldn't be surprised if baby-faced Seth, armed with his pepper spray, wasn't on his way up to handle the crazy woman on Floor 20, who just assaulted some schmuck.

Edward came up behind me quickly. He grabbed my hand while we waited for the elevator.

"That was so fucking hot, by the way," Edward leaned over and whispered into my ear.

Leave it to Edward to be turned on by my psychotic break. A half smile crept across my face. "Kickboxing classes finally paid off."

He squeezed my hand as we settled into the elevator and pressed the button to his parents' floor. This time we were alone in the elevator. He set down all those damn bags he was carrying and wrapped his arms around me. I let my arms encircle his neck and buried my face into the crook of his neck. His smell was so intoxicating. I could feel the warmth of his hands on my back through the flimsy material of my dress. It felt so good to be in his arms, but the elevator dinged, letting us know we had arrived all to quickly to our destination. I let go of him, but he held on to me still.

"I love you, Bella. I love you more than anything I have ever loved. I will love you even when I'm mad at you, and I will love you even more when you're mad at yourself."

I pressed my head back into his chest. He reached with his hand and pressed the button to keep the doors open and then held me a couple seconds longer. Finally, we exited and made our way to his waiting family.

Esme literally flung herself at Edward when she opened the door and found him standing there.

"Oh, Edward! Thank god you're all right. This day has been too much. Much too much."

"I'm fine, Mother. I'm sorry you've been worried." Edward hugged his mother, and I fell in love with him a little bit more. I always felt you could tell a lot about a man by the way he treated his mother.

Emmett was sitting on the couch, holding his head in his hands. Alice was sitting next to him with her hand on his back. She looked so small, especially sitting by Emmett. She eyed me warily and I could tell that she really wanted to know what was up with the dress I was wearing. I was hoping no one else would bring it up. Carlisle was sitting in an oversized chair, resting his elbows on his knees. He looked up at us but said nothing. My eyes wandered down to the coffee table in front of them. There sat an envelope. I could see the strands of golden hair sticking out. I thought I might throw up. My empty stomach tightened but had nothing to force out. I put my hand to my mouth and longed for Edward's arms again.

Emmett looked up at me finally, and I could see how distraught he was. His eyes were red and his cheeks were tear stained. I felt my chest tighten, my heart hurt for him.

"Can I listen to the tape?" I finally managed to squeak out.

Emmett couldn't find his voice, but he shook his head no. He was not going to let me listen to it. He wanted me to be done with this.

"Why can't she listen to it?" Edward said, like he was offended.

"Because Bella has done enough," Carlisle spoke now.

I looked at Edward and could see the anger flash in his eyes. He stepped forward, and I grabbed his arm, anchoring him to me. He was breathing unsteadily.

He put his head close to mine and quietly said in my ear, "You got to punch someone."

"Punching Royce won't make my mother cry," I said barely loud enough for him to hear. He did hear me though. His weight shifted off the balls of his feet and back to his heels. His eyes, though, stared a hole through his father's head.

"What have you decided to do tomorrow? Who's going to take the necklace to the monorail in the morning?" I figured I didn't need to hear the recording, they could just tell me what I needed to know.

"I'm going and I'm going to do exactly what they say. I'm going to go by myself and leave it exactly where they told me to," Emmett said, looking back at the floor.

"I'm so sorry, Em. I wish none of this was happening." I let go of Edward and walked over to Emmett. I knelt down in front of him, but he still wouldn't look at me. Alice gave me a pat on the shoulder. I put a hand on her knee to let her know I appreciated her comfort. I placed my other hand on Emmett oversized shoulder.

"She's going to be fine. You'll do what they say and they'll give her back."

"I should have listened to Mike, Bells. I let you make me believe this was Royce or Howard. But it's not. They wouldn't cut her, cut her hair. I let you convince me that it was all going to be fine, that it wasn't the Volturi, but it is, isn't it?" Now his eyes met mine and his pain was tangible between us. He was blaming me, like I blamed myself. I had been easily convinced by nothing but faulty circumstantial evidence. Stuff that would never go anywhere if I was conducting a real investigation.

"This isn't her fault." Edward was again on the defensive for me. Even though he was wrong. "She has been trying her best to figure this out and not tip anyone off. She put herself in harm's way for you."

"By doing what? Driving her drunk mother home and going on a shopping spree with you all afternoon? All the while your brother stayed here and obviously attracted the wrong attention by doing what she told him to do?" Carlisle said sitting straight up in his seat. His face was cold and hard. I jumped up, certain Edward might not resist the urge to hit him this time.

Edward was seething with hate. His fists were clenched and his green eyes looked forest green, they had darkened in his rage. "You don't know anything! You know nothing about her. Nothing! I don't even want you to know her because you'll never see her for what she is. You only see her as attached to me, and right away that makes her less in your eyes."

"Edward, honey." Esme grabbed on to him. She seemed more worried he was going to leave than hit Carlisle.

"Do you want to know what we did, Em? We went to Kings and Queens and stood in front of Aro Volturi. We convinced him we worked for Hale Enterprises and the sick fuck believed us and basically let us know if he wants something he takes it. Then after he got done eye fucking my girlfriend and threatening to take her into his possession, we figured out who the insider was here. The chick downstairs at the front desk. She works there and here. So, now we know what we are really up against. All because Bella was willing to risk her own safety." Edward was talking fast and the room was dead quiet when he finished. I closed my eyes. I didn't want him to see my frustration. I didn't want to drop that information on Emmett. It would only create more problems. I took a deep breath and opened my eyes, trying to control my emotions.

Emmett looked up at both of us and his expression changed from sadness to anger. Anger totally directed at me. He stood up and his whole body was quivering.

"You took him into Kings and Queens? You put him on that murderer's radar? Didn't I tell you to keep my brother out of this? All our interference got Rosalie hurt, and now you let my brother get mixed into this shit, too? Jesus, Bella!"

I was frozen in my spot. He was right. I had put Edward in danger. I had put everyone in danger. I should have left this all alone. I felt my lips tremble.

Edward again foolishly jumped to my defense. "She didn't _let_ me do anything. I wanted to help, Emmett. I want to help you find Rosalie."

"Ha! What were you going to do? Take pictures of the bad guys? You have no idea what you're doing and the one who pays is your brother. It's one thing to fuck up your own life, but for you to mess with your brother's happiness. You should have stayed out of this! You are so reckless, so arrogant!" Carlisle was on his feet, pointing an ugly finger at Edward.

"Carlisle," Esme stood at Edward's side.  
"Dad, stop," Emmett said at the same time, knowing this was wrong.

I stepped in front of Edward and grabbed his face in my hands, forcing his eyes to look at me and not his father. I looked in his beautiful eyes and could see the way his father's words clawed at his spirit. I knew all the thoughts running through his head. I knew how much he was going to let that poison seep in. I needed to get him out of here.

I shook my head. "Don't. Don't listen. Let's go." It was not fair. They could all blame me, but they were not going to put this on Edward. He had done nothing but be there for me today. They were not going to make him feel bad about that. I started pushing him back towards the door. Esme held on tight, but as gently as I could, I pushed her away. I looked back at Alice, who looked like she wanted to be anywhere but here. Emmett was sitting again and looking at the ground.

"Don't go, Edward. Please," Esme begged quietly as tears filled her eyes. He back out into the hallway.

"I'm sorry, Em. I love her, too, let's not forget." I grabbed our bags and walked out the door with Edward. He had the most heartbreaking look on his face. This glorious angel, he was someone to rejoice in and yet his father did nothing but break him down time and time again. I couldn't understand. I just knew we needed to leave.

In the elevator, I pressed the button to my floor and ached as I moved back beside him. Even in his current condition, he was breathtakingly beautiful. When I first met him, I could not believe he was even talking to me. No one who looked like Edward had ever given me the time of day before, of course at the same time, I have never met anyone who looked like Edward before. He clenched his perfect jaw and raked his fingers through his bronze hair.

"Edward," I whispered as I leaned into his shoulder.

"Don't, don't say anything. Please." His voice made my heart hurt.

The elevator reached my floor, and I grabbed his hand and pulled him with me. I had to rummage through the bags to find my jeans which held in their pocket my key. I had two keys. Mine and the one to Rosalie's suite. The thought of someone grabbing her as she came in last night and taking her out of here, holding her hostage, cutting her hair, maybe cutting her face made me weak in the knees. I opened my door and we walked in, throwing both key cards on the nearest table. Edward slumped down in a chair by the door. He continued to mess with his crazy hair.

I sighed and remembered something my father's best friend, Billy, told me after my dad died and my mom began falling apart. It seemed to apply here. I walked over and knelt down in front of him. I put my hand on his knee.

"Sometimes we want things from people. We need things from the people in our lives that they just can't give us. It isn't that they don't want to give us what we need, it's just they're not capable of it for some reason. It's their fault, not ours. And we can choose to punish ourselves for something that we can't control, or we learn to accept those people for what they are. Flawed." I hoped he understood what I meant.

"Oh, trust me I know I'm flawed. You don't have to remind me. I know I can't be what you need me to be. I don't deserve to be with you. You deserve better than me." He started to get up, and I don't think I ever got to my feet faster. I shoved him back down in the chair.

"Edward, I'm not talking about you! I'm talking about your father! Your father is one of the most flawed human being I have ever met! Baby, you want him to love you and accept you the way he does Emmett, but for some reason, he isn't capable of it. That is his problem not yours. You don't need to own it so thoroughly. He is the one with the problem not you, not you." I was back on my knees in front of him and threw my body on his lap, wrapping my arms around his waist.

"I never do anything right, Bella. Never. That's why he hates me. That's why he can't love me, I'm unlovable." He covered his face with his hands.

I snapped my head up and pulled his hands away so he would see me when I spoke. "You are not unlovable. God, I have never loved anyone as much as I love you! What you said to me in the elevator before that nightmare visit with your family, that is the way I feel about you. I love you and I will love you even when I'm mad at you. I will love you more when your father can't and I will love you even more when you hate yourself. I will always love you. And Bella Swan does not fall in love with just anyone."

A small smile danced across his lips. "I've heard that somewhere before."

"Well, it's true. I expend a great amount of energy keeping people at a distance. I don't trust easily. I don't love easily. But with you, it's effortless. You make it much too easy. The fact that your dad can't do it, tells me he has serious, serious issues. It is not you."

"Where have you been all of my life, Bella Swan?" He pulled me onto his lap and cradled my cheek in his hand. Our lips came together like moth to a flame. Unable to resist. He was my everything. He was all I needed in this world.

"It doesn't matter where I've been, only where I'm going. And from now on, wherever you go, I go," I whispered as he trailed kissed down my neck.

"Then to bed it is." He launched us out of the chair and carried me in his arms to the bed.

He laid me down and stood at the side of the bed shrugging out of his suit coat. He began unbuttoning his dress shirt and I could feel my body temperature rise. Edward without a shirt on was like getting a pony for Christmas.

"Stay very still," he cautioned. If he didn't get on top of me soon, I was going to spontaneously combust. He walked away from the bed, and I sat up.

"Where are you going?" I could feel my cheeks burning.

He walked over to the bags on the floor and grabbed his camera bag. He took his camera out and turned to me.

"Didn't I tell you to stay still? You are not a very good listener, Miss Swan." He smiled, wagging a tsking finger at me.

"What do you think you are going to do with that?" I asked, laying back down on the bed but now feeling very self conscious.

"I am going to take some more pictures of you, because I want a house filled with nothing but Bella,"- he snapped a picture - "Bella," - he snapped again - "Bella," he snapped a third.

**A/N: I love this chapter - hope you do too! Let me know what you think... I promise some fun in the next chapter if I get some!**


	29. Chapter 28 Sorry

**A/N: This is as close as I'm getting to a lemon for now. Hope you enjoy.**

EPOV

She was the most beautiful woman on the planet and she was in love with me. She was in love with me even when I was a sulky whiner. Now, she lay before me, blushing, chest heaving with desire. Desire for me. I was the luckiest bastard alive. She pushed up on her elbows and her silky hair fell perfectly behind her as she tilted her head back. Her dress pulled open in the front due to the way she was holding her shoulders, exposing more of her beautiful breasts than I was going to be able to handle soon. She smiled, actually being flirtatious with the camera. Back in Chicago, she didn't play along so well.

"Edward," she purred.

I kept taking pictures. "That's perfect baby. Tilt your head back a little bit more." Her neck looked mouthwatering.

She sat up and then turned herself around on all fours. Her hair now fell around her face, obscuring it a little but making her look sexier than anything I had ever seen. I moved to the foot of the bed as she began to slowly crawl across the bed. Her breasts were almost completely in view. I could see the lacy pushup bra she had not let me see her try on in the store.

"Edward," she said in a lusty, drive me out of my mind kind of way.

"Bella, you are the sexiest woman I have ever seen," I said, after taking four or five more pictures.

"If you don't get on this bed right this second, I am going to smash your camera like I smashed Royce's face earlier."

_Badass Bella, shit._

I set the camera down on the dresser behind me and tackled her like lion would his lioness. We rolled around on the massive king-sized bed until I pressed her body under mine. I might have been on top but she had me right where she wanted me. Our mouths moved hungrily together. I wanted to taste her and for her to taste me. I pushed her legs apart with mine and she bucked her hips up, arousing me to no end. Her body was so warm, so light. I rolled and let her lay on top of me. Her hands roamed over my chest as her hair fell all around me. I let my hands slip under the hem of her dress and slide up her thighs to her hips. I knew I was home. I knew I was going to love this girl all my life.

"Edward," she moaned as I kissed her neck and my hands wandered over her perfect ass.

Then it began; phones rang out. First the room phone.

"Ignore it, damn it," she whispered pressing her hips down on mine, hard. It was my turn to moan.

Her cell started ringing. _Fuck._ She didn't stop, though. She kept her mouth on me and kissed down my chest. Until she made it to my waist where my pants now stood in her way. She lifted up and began unbuckling my belt. She was not moving fast enough for my liking.

Suddenly, my cell began to ring out from my pants pocket. Three phones ringing at the same time. Bella reached into my pocket and rubbed her other hand right where it counted making me squirm under her. She opened the phone and smiled.

"I'm sorry Edward can't come to the phone right now,"

I smiled, but then she frowned.

"Oh, Esme. Please don't cry. Please. He's right here. He can talk to you. I'm sorry." She bit her bottom lip and stuck the phone out for me.

_My mother. Damn it._ Just hearing her name caused the moment to end even faster than a cold shower. Bella rolled off me and went to find her still ringing phone.

"Mother," I said, putting the phone to my ear.

"Edward, sweetheart." She was sobbing something fierce. "I am so sorry. I am so sorry your father said those things to you, to Bella. Oh, I cannot tell you how he has broken my heart with the way he treats you!" She continued to cry.

"Mother, it's not your fault. Please don't cry, please." I looked at Bella who was on the phone with, I was guessing, Emmett. I could hear her refusing his need to apologize.

"No, don't apologize to me. You don't have to apologize. I can only imagine how difficult this is for you. I know you love her more than anything." Bella looked at me and bit her lip again.

From my phone, my mother continued talking. "We argued. Your father and I argued. I stormed out of there. I can't even look at him. He makes me so angry sometimes! I went to your room, but you must not be there. Please, please tell me you forgive me for allowing him to hurt you," my mother begged.

"Mother, you do not need to apologize. I don't blame you for the way he treats me."

"When I saw how Bella cared for you. How she just took you and told you not to listen. I realized I should have been doing that your whole life. I should have been telling you, you are so much more than he sees. You are so special, Edward. You are so very special." She was sobbing again. She was killing me. I sat up threw my legs over the edge of the bed.

"Thank you," I managed to say before I became overcome by the emotion welling in my chest and the lump in my throat.

"Tell me where you are. I need to see you. I need to apologize to Bella."

I stood up and began buttoning my shirt while I pressed the phone to my ear with my shoulder.

"I'm in Bella's room, 1805." I looked at Bella trying to apologize with my eyes. She smiled at me and shook her head as to say not to worry about it.

"Em, your mom is coming here. Why don't you and Alice meet us down here. We'll go get some dinner. I haven't eaten since last night. I'm starving," Bella said, walking over to me and licking her lips.

_Ugh. Torture. Pure torture._

We both hung up. I quickly grabbed her up, knowing our alone time was severely limited.

"When we get back to Chicago we are turning our phones off, locking the doors and windows, and we are not leaving my apartment for a full 48 hours, maybe more." I kissed her hard and when she pulled away I felt sparks on my tongue.

"I'm sure 48 hours is not going to be long enough for all the things I am going to do to you." She gave me a wicked smile. I cursed myself for telling my mother the correct room number.

My mom made it to the room first. She hugged me and then hugged Bella. I just wanted her to stop crying.

"Bella, I am so sorry. Please forgive my husband for the way he has spoken to you today. Emmett has done nothing but tell us what an amazing woman you are all afternoon. Edward has done so well." My mother wiped her cheeks.

Bella was so gracious. "Esme, please. Don't apologize. I just listened to Emmett apologize repeatedly. I really can't hear anymore of it."

There was a loud knocking at the door. "Something tells me you are going to hear those words in person a few more times." I winked as I went to let Emmett in.

"Edward," my brother began then he had me in one of his bear hugs. It was a little humiliating to be manhandled. "I love you little brother, you know that, right?"

"I know, Em. I know. Now, if you love me, you'll let me breathe."

He set me down, apologizing. I couldn't think of any other time in my life when I heard the words "'I'm sorry" more.

"Bells." Emmett went in for the bone crusher. Bella was off her feet and dangled helplessly in his arms.

I smiled awkwardly at the little wedding planner who snuck in behind Emmett. She smiled back even though I was sure she hadn't decided if she liked me or not yet. Too much to process in one day, I'm sure.

Emmett set my beautiful girl down, and she took my hand. "We haven't eaten. We were going to get some dinner before you all called."

I squeezed her hand and had a hard time not smirking. Dinner, food, eating - none of these things had crossed my mind once in the last few hours, especially not in the last twenty minutes. I take that back, I did think about eating but not the kind we would be doing at the restaurant. _Tonight, some time tonight._ These people would have to sleep sometime.

We picked out a restaurant near the hotel and started out. While Emmett went to get the car, I hung back and pulled out my phone. Bella eyed me curiously. I motioned for her to give me a minute of privacy. She wrapped her arm around Alice's, and they chatted it up with my mother. He picked up on the second ring.

"We're going out to dinner, as a family. I know Mother won't be able to eat without making up with you. You..." I stopped and took a breath. "...You should join us."

The ladies stood outside waiting for Emmett and Jasper. Alice had called him and told him to come meet us for dinner. When I came out, Bella untangled herself from Alice and entangled herself with me.

"Can I ask who you were calling back there?" she asked quietly as we waited.

I looked at my mother, who was trying very hard to smile as she talked with Alice, but who still looked so very sad. My mother did not fight, ever. I didn't know that I had ever seen or heard my parents argue in all my twenty-six years. She was a pleaser, someone who always wanted everyone to be happy.

"Just someone I'm trying to accept for who they are," I answered and then kissed her forehead.

She looked at me like I just gave her diamonds or something major like that. Her face completely lit up and suddenly the only thing that mattered was I wanted her to look like that always. Emmett pulled up in his jeep and Jasper just happened to come in right behind him. We were making our way to the cars when my father exited the hotel. I was holding the door to the jeep open for my mother.

"Dad is going to ride with you guys. Bella and I will go with Alice and Jasper."

She looked over my shoulder and saw him standing there actually looking kind of humble.

"Oh Edward." She sighed, touching my cheek with her hand. "Are you sure about this? You aren't tricking me and sending us off to dinner while you run away?"

"I would never trick you, Mother." The look on her face made me stop and I laughed. "Okay, that sounds exactly like something I might do, but it is not my intention tonight, I promise you. We are already missing one family member at dinner, no reason to be missing two."

My mother took my head in her hands and pulled me down to kiss my forehead. "I told you, you are special. So very special."

I stepped aside as my father approached us. He glanced at Mother first then turned to me. "Thank you for inviting me. Hopefully I am welcome by all." He glanced at Mother again. She was still angry with him, her mouth still frowned and her brow was furrowed.

"That depends. Is there anything else you wanted to say to our son? Our son, who appears to care more about my happiness than his own?" she retorted.

My father's eyes dropped down in shame. He cleared his throat and looked again at me. "I am sorry for what I said. What has happened today has nothing to do with you. It was wrong of me to insinuate that any of this was your fault. Or yours." He turned and looked right at Bella. She wasn't expecting an apology. Her cheeks turned red and and she looked at me with surprise on her face.

"Apology accepted," she managed to say, looking back at him.

I nodded. "We'll see you guys at the restaurant."

I stepped away from the jeep and grabbed Bella hand, leading her to Jasper's car. I felt a little discombobulated.

"Are you okay?" Bella asked, looking the way my mother did when she was worried that maybe I might try to escape. "You look pale all of the sudden."

"I don't think I've ever heard my father say the words 'I'm sorry' to me ever in my whole life. Did that really just happen?" I asked as I opened the car door for her.

"It happened, I heard it." She smiled at me and got in the car. Just then, the biggest smile I had ever felt crossed my face as I climbed in after her.

It happened.


	30. Chapter 29 Better

**A/N: Ok I am not totally comfortable with the whole lemon thing but I'm trying. There are just certain words I can't bring myself to even type out. Hopefully you'll still enjoy! This chapter is both in BPOV and then a little of EPOV at the end. He just had to be heard.**

BPOV

Dinner with Edward's family. Again. This time without Rosalie. Emmett was definitely not enjoying himself. Everyone had apologized until they were blue in the face, and now it appeared we had very little to talk about. We sat at a large rectangular table in the crowded dining room at Assaggio, one of the city's best Italian restaurants. I didn't eat here often when I lived in city, but it was somewhere I'd go with my family on special occasions. Mike even took me here once on a date. It was very early in our relationship and Applebee's was as fancy as we got after that. There were elaborate wall murals, creating an authentic, Italian bistro feel. Most were Michaelangelo replicas, with the exception of one that was called Uffzi by the artist Lippi, according to Esme, who seemed really taken by the place.

"The artwork in here is amazing," Esme said as we waited for our main course. Emmett hadn't touched his salad, while Edward, on the other hand, was eating like there was no tomorrow. We had been so busy today, we never ate breakfast or lunch. He had to be famished.

"My dad used to love coming here. He focused his attention on a different mural every time we came. You would never guess that kind of stuff would interest him." I felt I needed to say something to keep us from suffering in silence.

"I miss your dad. He was so funny, such an interesting character. Tough on the outside and nothing but a big softy on the inside." Alice perked up. She had an good relationship with my dad. They used to joke and tease one another all the time. He thought the world of her and all her endless energy.

"What did your father do for a living, Bella?" Esme asked.

"He was the chief of police in our small home town. He loved to fish and hunt, and he loved the Mariners, but he had this other side that loved art and music. He loved photography, like Edward." I was surprised how easy it was to talk about my dad. I usually shied away from this topic.

"Baseball _and_ photography, like Edward." Jasper noted. He and Edward had spent some time talking about baseball yesterday at dinner when I was foolishly pretending not to notice him.

"Mr. Swan and I seemed to share similar passions, indeed. He did have the perfect subject for his photos." Edward smiled as he washed down his fourth piece of bread with his glass of wine.

"Well, Mr. Shutterfly, what's with you and that camera? Do you always carry it with you everywhere you go in case you run into some celebrities or something?" Alice teased Edward. I shot her a _be nice_ look. So far everyone had been trying very hard to have an insult-free dinner.

Edward was perhaps feeling the effects of his two glasses of wine and only salad and bread in his stomach. He finished off his second glass and carefully put it down in front of him. "I've been inspired lately, would you like to see some of my recent shots?"

"No!" I shouted a little too loud. All eyes turned on me. I could feel my face becoming redder by the second. The wine was definitely going to his head.

Edward placed his hand on my leg and squeezed. I was ready to punch him for even thinking about teasing me that way. I needed to remember to figure out how to delete those picture off his camera as soon as possible. Maybe I could just take out the memory card, break it, smash it, flush it down the toilet.

"You all right, Bells?" It was the first time Emmett spoke.

"I mean, we can't go passing around Edward's camera at the table. The food will be here any minute. We don't want to... we don't need to..." I was a bumbling idiot.

Edward squeezed my leg again and could hear him snickering next to me, even though I was refusing look at him.

"Maybe after dinner," Esme said kindly, looking at me like maybe I was slightly unstable. I swore to myself that I would keep the crazy under control the rest of dinner.

"After dinner, yes." Edward slid his hand up my leg and my dress with it. I grabbed it and pushed it back towards my knee. I finally turned to glare at him. Seriously, at the table with his family? Not happening.

The food came and we ate, well, everyone but Emmett ate. We talked a little about the city, Carlisle and Esme talked about L.A. and what was new there. Mr. Cullen, was actually Dr. Cullen. Something I hadn't gathered from the conversation yesterday. He was a plastic surgeon. At first that made perfect sense. He seemed to only care about how things looked and wanting everything to be perfect. Yet, Esme went on and on about how he had been so busy the last six months doing pro bono surgeries on a child who had been burned in a fire. I tried to imagine him having a pleasant bedside manner, especially with a kid. I really couldn't picture it. I wasn't going to like this guy just because he did nice things for poor burned children. Not when today was the first time he had ever apologized to his own son.

Dr. Cullen said very little at dinner. Seemed his very first fight with his wife made him careful not to give her reason to start a second one. Edward kept touching my leg under the table. When he wasn't shoveling food into his mouth, he was finding new ways make me blush. He started with my knee, then he tried to work his way up my thigh. I squeezed my legs together, but that did not deter him. He began to make little circles with his fingers, making it hard to not just open up and let him in. I finally crossed my legs under the table, but he then just switched to brushing his fingers along the outside of my thigh. I must have shifted in my seat so many times everyone was probably beginning to wonder if I had ADD. Between this and what happened in the room before we left, I was a hot mess. He had to know what he was doing to me because he had that damn crooked grin on his face all through dinner. He probably could feel the heat coming from between my legs. Maybe that's why he wouldn't stop. Finally, I held on to his wandering hand with both of mine. With it safely enclosed in my trap, I tried to relax but I could feel his hand twitching in mine, like it was killing him.

Alice was monopolizing the conversation. She was talking about a charity event she was hired to organize for the Seattle Seahawks. Emmett looked half interested even though it was football related, his favorite sport. He could obviously only think about one thing, one person. I should be grateful that I had Edward sitting here next to me safe and sound. I should be glad that I could hold his hand, even if it was a wandering hand. I couldn't wait to get him back to Chicago and have no distractions. As Alice went on and on, I imagined the things we would do to each other locked in his apartment for 48 hours straight. Edward's hand was trying to coax both of mine back up to my lap. I couldn't take it any more. I stood up and pulled him with me.

"Excuse us just a minute, I need to show Edward something before we leave," I interrupted Alice midsentence. Everyone looked at me warily. _So much for keeping the crazy under wraps._ Edward, ever eager, followed me.

He pulled me back to him and whispered in my ear, "You need to show me something? Really?" The hope in his voice was almost comical.

"You are going to tell your mother how fantastic the mural is above the kitchen and how the Creation of Adam is absolutely your favorite," I said back into his ear.

"Creation of Adam, yes, definitely my favorite. I love the Creation of Adam. I mean, I've always thought poor Adam, you know? I mean Michaelangelo decided to give the guy like the world's smallest penis. Maybe old Mikey wasn't too well hung himself, who knows," he rambled as we made our way to the restrooms. I looked back at him, unable to comprehend just how the man's mind worked.

"What?" he asked innocently.

"Stop talking before I change my mind," I warned him.

I put my hand on the handle of the women's restroom door. It was unlocked. Assaggio had two small bathrooms, one for men and one for women. Private bathrooms with locking doors. I looked around making sure no one caught sight of us and slipped in with Edward in tow. I locked the door and Edward immediately grabbed me and pushed me up against the tiled wall.

"Did I mention how much I love you?" he said before he smashed his lips to mine. His one hand cradled my cheek and his other squeezed me at my hip.

I turned my head after a minute of letting him have his way with my mouth and my tongue.

"We have very little time before Alice realizes we have been gone too long. So, I hate to be so forward, but I need you inside me. Now," I said with ragged breath. He kissed down my neck and ran his tongue along my collarbone. He's stopped licking and looked straight into my eyes, his green eyes so bright, so full of desire.

"I fucking love you." He laughed. I realized right then that he thought we had come in here to just make out. It was suddenly his lucky day. He quickly unbuckled his belt and undid his pants. I slipped my panties down over my hips and legs. Before I could completely step out of them, Edward's hands were under my dress and he was lifting me off the ground.

I lifted one leg up and hooked it over his hip as he pressed me against the tile a little harder. The tile felt so cold against my bare skin. Such a contrast to the way my whole body felt. I wanted Edward so badly, I wanted him to know he was mine and I was his. I wanted him to believe that we were never going to be apart again.

"I love fucking you, too," he breathed against my neck as he kissed me under my ear and then back on my mouth. Our tongues dove around each other and darted in and out as he pressed himself against me. Everything fell right in place, and I moaned loudly as he slipped inside me.

"Fuck," Edward groaned as he moved his hands under me to hold me in position. This was all about need. I needed him, which is so different from want. He was the only thing that was going to get me through the rest of this godforsaken day. I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck and kissed and sucked under his ear. He smelled divine and his skin tasted sweet. I couldn't get enough of him.

He reached one hand up and cupped my breast. I threw my head back and he lavished my neck with warm, wet kisses. Our mouths met again and my hands started pulling at his hair. I loved his hair, his wild and sexy hair.

He moved in and out of me. I knew it wasn't going to be long before he pushed me over the edge. I pulled my mouth away for a moment.

"You make everything better," I said aloud as the thought ran through my head.

We came together, both trying to not scream out but both wanting to. He pressed his forehead to my shoulder as he set my feet back on the ground.

"No one has ever said that to me before." He looked at me with his dazzling eyes searching mine for confirmation that I meant what I said. "I don't usually make anything better. I'm always the one screwing everything up."

"You made today better for me. I'd be a wreck like your brother right now if it wasn't for you." My hands rested on his shoulders, and I gave him three short and sweet kisses on the lips.

"Sitting out there like a zombie instead of unleashing your inner sex goddess in the bathroom? You're right, I make you better." He flashed me that crooked grin that made my inner sex goddess rear her sexy head in the first place.

* * *

EPOV

Dinner with the family. Good times. I was fucking starving. I didn't realize until we sat down and I looked at the menu that we hadn't eaten all day. I scarfed down everything they put in front of me. Once I got some food in me, I realized how much I wanted to be with Bella. Alone with Bella. She kept thwarting me every time I tried to put my hand on her. I wasn't going to do anything too risque under the tablecloth, just touch her a little. She was so warm and I could almost feel the heat rising the further I felt up her leg. It was like I couldn't control myself. She was furious with me. Her cheeks were permanently red throughout dinner. She also looked like she had ants in her pants, even though my sweet girl was not wearing pants tonight. No, there was very little keeping me from her little hot spot.

_God, she was killing me._

On my final attempt, after being caught in her hand trap, she jumped up. Unlike her usually controlled self, she interrupted her friend to drag me away from the table to "show me something". I really hoped what she was going to show me was those damn breasts I had wanted a good look at since this morning. She said something about Michaelangelo's Creation of Adam and the next thing I knew we were in the ladies room. The private, lock-the-door kind of ladies room.

All I could think was,_ "Yes, yes, yes. I am getting me some boobies."_

I was all - "Did I mention how much I love you?"

Then she said something about the over-talkative pixie out there with my family and then, "I need you inside me. Now."

I almost came in my pants. Bella just asked me to fuck her in the restaurant bathroom. I was licking her perfect collarbone and stopped, sure she was messing with me. I looked at her to make sure she was serious. She had to be messing with me after I had messed with her, threatening to show everyone the pictures I took of her in her room. But one look in those chocolate eyes and I knew she was dead serious. I'm not sure how I even managed to get my pants down as fast as I did. All I knew is she _needed_ me, fucking _needed_ me.

Being inside Bella was the only place I wanted, no needed, to be. I groaned loudly when I made my way in. It was like she was created for me. If Michaelangelo had painted The Creation of Bella it would have my big dick in it somewhere. _Sorry Adam._ Actually I felt sorrier for Eve.

The only bad thing was this was fast and furious sex. I didn't have time to completely get lost in her like I wanted to.

She moaned, "You make everything better." We came at the same time and I felt like a was a hundred feet tall.

_I make everything better?_ I never made anything better. I wanted to make everything better for her from this moment on. Forever. Because she was my everything. Twenty-four hours with her and she had my whole fucking family telling me they were sorry for treating me like shit and that I was "special". This did not happen in my world. Bella didn't realize that it was her. She made me better, she made me able to make things better.

We put ourselves back together, washed up, and she gave me the nod to open the door. Of course, there was a little old lady standing in the hallway waiting for the restroom. Bella's face turned flaming red.

"You are absolutely right, dear. That tile would look perfect in our master bathroom. We should definitely go with something like that." I smiled at the wide eyed woman as I led my little sex goddess out of the bathroom. "My wife, always dragging me into bathrooms to look at tile - remodeling is a bitch." I rolled my eyes and the woman smiled as the look of shock left her face.

Bella squeezed my hand and the blush that covered her cheeks started to fade. I leaned in and kissed her cheek. "I make everything better, right? No worries."

**A/N: Ok let me know what you think...**


	31. Chapter 30 Getting Some Air

BPOV

As we walked out of the restaurant all I could think was, _"__I just had sex in the restaurant bathroom." _My father would die if he weren't already dead. I couldn't control myself. Edward had this power over me. This whole day my head was overwhelmed with so many thoughts that I needed him to make me _feel_. He did exactly that. Then, he went and called me his wife in front of the lady waiting outside the bathroom. He was just making up a story to cover up our little indiscretion, but I had to admit, my heart jumped as those words crossing his lips. I was in big trouble. We have been back together less than 24 hours, had sex three times (once in a public place), and now I was getting excited by him calling me his wife. What was wrong with me? Edward took my hand in his and turned to his family as they walked to the cars.

"Bella and I are going to walk a bit and then head back to the hotel. We'll see you guys in the morning."

Esme walked back over to us and hugged him tightly. "Are you sure? I thought dinner went well. Is everything ok?" She was searching his face for something, something that she missed during dinner, something her husband had said or done.

"Mother, I'm fine. Dinner was very... pleasant." He stole a glance my way, and I bit my lip. "Bella and I need to just walk. It's been a rough day. We need the air." He spoke so sweetly to her, reassuring her and making her feel better. He had no idea how often he did that. He underestimated his ability to make people feel better all the time.

Emmett looked at us with sad eyes. I felt guilty. Guilty that I was going to be walking away with his brother/my boyfriend, clearing my head, while he went back to the hotel to continue his suffering.

"I'll call you when we get back to the hotel. We should talk before tomorrow," I said, not sure he would let me have anything to do with tomorrow. He nodded and turned back to the car.

I hugged Alice and Jasper goodbye. Esme gave me a wave as she joined her husband.

Dr. Cullen just nodded to us as he held the car door open for his wife. He wasn't so bad when he didn't open his mouth.

We walked up the street hand in hand. It was June, but the wind had picked up and it was getting a little chilly now that the sun was going down and clouds were moving in. Summers in Seattle are nice, not as rainy. Edward noticed me shiver and shrugged out of his jacket, wrapping it around my shoulders.

"Thanks." I smiled.

"Making things better all the time," he joked as he put his arm around me and kissed the side of my head.

"You have no idea..." I snuggled closer to him. He was harder on himself than anyone. I was going to have to work extra hard to help him see himself correctly.

I was longing to go back to Chicago again as we made our way down Virginia Street. Being alone with Edward was easier. I couldn't wait to go back to the way it was before Jake showed up. Maybe because after today, we were even better than before.

We didn't talk; we just walked. After about four blocks, we had made it almost to the waterfront. There was a small grassy area on the other side of Western Ave, kiddie corner from Pike Place Market. We crossed the street and sat down on a park bench. The sun was still out even though it was getting cloudy. It was only seven-thirty; we had at least another hour before the sun set completely. There was a little Tulley's Coffee booth set up near where we were sitting.

He wrapped his arms around me and rubbed his hands up and down my arms. "You look like you could use something to warm you up." Looking up and down the street, he smirked. "Since I don't see any private bathrooms nearby, I think I'll grab us a couple mocha lattes."

I shook my head and narrowed my eyes at him. He smiled that crooked smile of his, and I couldn't really be mad at him for teasing. I slipped my arms in his suit coat and wrapped it around myself. I inhaled deeply, savoring his smell. I watched him interact with the girl selling the coffee. She was staring at him and flipping her hair nervously as he talked to her. He had to know the effect he had on women. They became putty in his hands every time. I thought back to the first time I saw him. He was watching me look at his photographs in the gallery. He was actually staring, at me, which made me so uncomfortable. I started to think maybe he knew me, but I couldn't figure out how that was possible. I would have definitely remembered someone like Edward. I told him to take a picture, it lasted longer. So lame, especially considering where we were, but it made him smile. He came over and introduced himself as the photographer whose work was being showcased. I remember having to focus very hard on the photos and not on him; the way he looked, the way he smelled, the way he sounded. Focusing on him made me unable to speak without giggling like a little girl. _Giggle, giggle, you're so talented, giggle giggle._ So embarrassing. Somehow, I managed to pull myself together. The more I focused on the pictures, the more I could articulate what I saw in them that made him talented. Why I caught his attention, I'd never know.

Edward came back with two tall coffees and handed me one before rejoining me on the bench.

"This looks like a busy part of town," he said as we watched a bunch of people walking past. It was a nice night for the most part, and people seemed to be out and about enjoying it.

"You should see it when the market opens in the morning. From here down about four more blocks is the Pike Place Market," I pointed to the south, "tons of shopping, restaurants, and farmer's market. Fresh fish galore."

We sipped on our coffees, and I started to feel warmer right away. Edward took out his camera and started taking some pictures. When he turned it on me, I put my hand up.

"Enough pictures of me, please. You don't need a million pictures of me doing nothing," I said, ducking my head.

"Oh come on, you know I could look at you doing nothing all day long. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on. Based on what I saw at your mother's house today, you were never this difficult for your father."

"Edward, seriously." I could feel my face blushing. _Damn, I was so predictable. _I set my coffee down and stood up. I lunged at him and grabbed the camera.

"Let's see how you like being stalked by the paparazzi!" I started taking pictures of him. Pressing the button, not really paying attention to what I was really shooting. "Come on, give me something I can work with here."

Edward stood very still with a little grin on his face. He had one hand on his hip and the other held his coffee.

"You want something to shoot?" he asked after watching me for a couple seconds. He set his coffee down and started unbuttoning his dress shirt. "Is this what you want to take pictures of?"

I put the camera down and walked over to him. "Stop. What are you doing?"

"Modeling. This is what I was hoping you would do, so..."

I handed him his camera back. "We do not need to be arrested tonight for indecent exposure. We've broken enough laws today."

"Detective Swan, how nice of you to join us tonight." He smirked.

"Ha, ha. One of us needs to start being a law abide citizen again. Keep us out of trouble."

Edward came towards me and put his hands around my waist. He pulled me close, and I could feel my law abiding side thinking about taking a break again.

"But I love the little rule breaker in you. She is so... irresistible." He leaned in and brushed his lips along my jaw and then placed a soft kiss on my lips. I felt my whole body tense and then immediately relax in his arms. He was magic.

A car horn honked and shook me from my reverie. I pulled back and sat back on the bench. I shook my head trying to think clearly again. "You are a dangerous man, Mr. Cullen. Very dangerous."

He laughed and picked his coffee back up. "Anytime you want to pull out your handcuffs, Detective, let me know. I will not resist, I promise."

I shook my head again, he was incorrigible. Sexy, magnetic, perfect, and incorrigible. He took a couple more pictures of all the activity going on around us and a few of the view of the bay.

"Did you like this city? Do you miss it?" he asked, sitting back down and putting his camera away.

I thought about it for a second. "Sometimes. I miss some things and not others, I guess. I miss my friends. I miss the more laid back nature of things here. Chicago is a great city; it's just a little more fast paced, I guess."

"Did you really want to move or did you just need to get away from Jake?" he asked, taking my hand in his.

"I needed to get away. My mom was driving me crazy. Jake was definitely becoming a big problem, and I don't know..." I sighed, "...without my dad around, this city, Forks where I grew up, anywhere near here, just didn't feel right. When he was alive, he was probably what kept me around here the longest. I would have moved out of Washington eventually. Once he was gone, I didn't see any reason not to go."

"You miss him a lot, don't you?" Edward asked, letting go of my hand and putting his arm around my shoulder instead. I leaned into him and let him comfort me. I don't know why I had been thinking so much about my dad today.

"Every day."

"I wish I could have met him. He might not have liked me, though. I never make a very good impression on dads. I don't know what it is. I think I just give off this vibe that scares the shit out of anyone with a daughter," he said.

I looked up at his face; he was smiling the perfect, mind-blowing smile of his. I knew exactly what kind of vibe Edward gave off and it should scare anyone with a daughter. That smile made good girls go bad. Exhibit A - Bella in the bathroom.

"True, my father would not have liked you _at first_, because he didn't like any guys that I dated. And that vibe you give off - that would be your 'I'm too sexy' vibe. Fathers look at you and know exactly what they would have done to poor, unsuspecting women if they were you. Then, when they realize you're into _their_ daughter, all hell breaks loose. You also have this power that makes every woman that looks at you have dirty thoughts run through her head immediately. Who wants their little girl thinking about that?"

"Dirty thoughts, huh? Oh, Miss Swan, tell me more." He nuzzled my hair and neck.

"I think I have inflated your ego enough for one day. You have the rest of our life to listen to my dirty thoughts." I kissed him and then took another sip of coffee.

"The rest of _our_ life? I like the sound of that. I could handle that." He kissed my temple.

My thoughts suddenly turned back to Emmett and Rosalie. This week was supposed to be about preparing for their happily ever after. Instead we were hoping she would just be coming back alive. I swallowed hard at the thought of her, alone and scared.

"What's wrong? Is that not what you meant?" Edward pulled back a little, so he could look at me.

"No, I was just thinking about Em and Rose. I feel like such a failure. I am so afraid that our visit to Kings and Queens might have put her in more danger." I pushed closer to him.

"We didn't do anything except let him know we knew he was interested in necklace. We didn't accuse him of anything. We didn't threaten him or anything. There would be no reason to hurt her. We probably just confused him more than anything," Edward reasoned. He held on to me tightly.

"She is the best friend I have ever had. If she comes home tomorrow with even a scratch, I'll never forgive myself."

"Stop. You can't blame yourself for some madman holding your super-rich best friend hostage. This has nothing to do with you. Them cutting her hair was not your fault, either. Stop. We're not even going to go there."

I stood up and turned to face the bay. I looked down at Edward, who ran his hand through his hair, causing the front to stick up even higher.

"How does someone like you become best friends with someone like Rosalie, anyways?" he asked, changing the subject in a way.

I looked down on him with a frown. "What's that suppose to mean? How does someone like me; poor, plain me become best friends with gorgeous, rich Rose?"

"Bella Swan, I would never call you plain, ever. There is not one plain thing about you." He grabbed at the bottom of the jacket I was wearing, his face looked angry.

I ran back of my fingers across his cheek, and he softened a bit. He grabbed my hand and kissed it lightly.

"Sorry. Well, the Hales decided that the city was just too big and scary for their precious only child. So, they bought up this like five acre area on the outskirts of Forks. They built their mansion and enrolled Rosalie into Fork Middle School for 8th grade. Mr. Hale would work and live in the city during the week and join Mrs. Hale and Rosalie in Forks on the weekends." I remembered it all like it was yesterday. "Rosalie has always been the most beautiful girl I have ever met. I remember sitting in homeroom and in walked this blond beauty who looked more like an 18-year-old than a 13-year-old, if you know what I mean."

Edward chuckled. "Oh, I know what you mean. Those poor, poor boys. I bet they sat with books covering their laps after she walked in."

I scrunched up my face in disgust. "Ok, gross. She was stunning even when she was young. Her long hair swished back and forth as she walked and she had clothes on that looked like they cost more than my entire wardrobe. She was like a living barbie doll."

"So you hated her, because girls always hate girls like Rosalie. Admit it."

"I didn't think I would like her, but I can't say I hated her. I'll admit that I was jealous. Every girl envied her, but they all wanted to be her friend at the same time. Every guy wanted, well you know what they wanted." I shrugged my shoulders and smiled.

"No tell me. Slowly," he teased, arching an eyebrow.

"You think you are so funny."

"I am so funny. I'm sexy, too, supposedly. But we digress. So, how did you two become friends exactly?"

"Long story short, we had a few classes together and talked a few times. She had this group of girls that started following her around like she was the Queen of Sheba or something, because you know, wherever Rose went the boys were sure to follow. She wasn't stuck up though. I kept thinking she would be, but she was always nice to everyone. Popular, unpopular, she treated everyone the same. She was brilliant on top of it all and would participate in class a lot, but socially, she didn't say much. She was actually kind of quiet like me."

I closed my eyes for a second thinking about those days. I opened them again to see Edward waiting to hear more.

"We had this English teacher, who told the worst jokes. They were so over the head of most of the kids in class, but Rosalie and I always seemed to laugh at the same ones. My mom always says I was a middle-aged person trapped in a child's body. Rosalie seemed to share that same trait; we were two old souls. One day at lunch, she came over to my table where I sat with Alice and this girl named Jane. She sat down next to me, to the great dismay of Lauren Mallory and her posse. That's kind of how it started." I was staring off, lost in my memory. It seemed so long ago. Maybe because it seemed like Rose was my friend forever, not just since we were thirteen.

"And you've been best friends ever since, huh?" Edward asked, pulling me back to the present.

"Not exactly. Like I told you before, I don't trust easily. I am really good at keeping people from getting too close. But eventually Rosalie won me over." I smiled at the next memory.

Edward stood up and threw away his empty coffee cup. "How'd she do that? Buy you some cool shit or something?"

I shook my head. "Um, _no_. My friendship was not for sale, dumbass. We had to choose a homeroom representative for student council. Don't laugh, but I really wanted to be the class rep. It must have been the controlling rule-lover in me. Student council officer seemed to be perfect for me."

He laughed at me. "Officer Bella, even way back then, huh?" We laughed together.

"Of course the whole class had to vote for someone. When our teacher asked for nominations, I nominated myself, totally lame, I know. But then Lauren nominated Rosalie. Once Rose was nominated, no one else even thought about going for it. I was furious. I was furious with Lauren and with Rosalie. I mean, she didn't even seem that interested, so why was she letting herself be nominated? I thought she was finally showing her true colors. She knew I wanted it and was taking it because she could. The class voted, and it was nothing but a popularity contest. The votes came back twenty to one in favor of Rosalie."

"Smart move voting for yourself. At least then it wasn't unanimous," Edward said, putting his hand up like we should high five or something.

"I didn't vote for myself! Geez!" I elbowed him in the ribs. "Rosalie voted for me and when it was all over she went up to the teacher and told him she really didn't want to do it, so the runner up should take the spot."

Edward slung his arm around me again. "Aww, she dropped out, so you could be Officer Bella."

"Rose knew that everyone would vote for her. She also knew that once she was nominated no one else would try. That's why she didn't object at first. She knew she'd win, but that once she dropped out, I would get it. That's when I knew she was really my friend. That's Rosalie. She can have anything. She can get anyone to do anything for her, but she never asks for more than she needs. She never abuses the power her looks and wealth afford her. Never." I could feel the tears welling in my eyes. I tried to wipe them away before they fell. Rosalie didn't even want the fucking five million dollar necklace her father bought her. She would have been happy carrying a two dollar blue handkerchief as her something blue. Actually, she would have been happy marrying Emmett at the courthouse downtown in front of no one but me and Alice. No big wedding, no fancy clothes. All Rosalie wanted was to marry Emmett. That was it.

_Fuck._ The tears started falling.

"Come here." Edward pulled me into his chest. He held me tight and ran his fingers through my hair. "Don't cry, sweetheart. She's going to be fine. She is going to be back tomorrow and everything is going to be fine. Emmett is going to love her every minute of every day. And we can come visit them whenever you want, we'll invite them to Chicago to visit us, and things will be perfect. Don't cry."

"Rose would do anything for anyone. Give the shirt off her back. Literally. When we were sixteen this asshole named James fucking dumped a glass of fruit punch down the front of my shirt. After I fucking gave him a bloody nose, Rose took me in the bathroom and gave me her shirt. She walked around all day in this little tank top, so I didn't have to wear my fucking gym shirt all day. That's what she's like. She would do anything for me, and I have done nothing for her when she needs me the most! I can't find her, I can't help her!" I pressed my face into his chest, letting the despair have its way with me.

"Bella. Rosalie would not want you to beat yourself up over this. You have spent the whole day trying to figure this out. What more can you do? There's nothing to do but wait. She will not be mad at you. Not if she is the kind of friend you say she is. Let's go back to the hotel. I think we both need some sleep tonight." He held me and kissed the top of my head until I was able to pull myself together.

We got a cab and headed back to the hotel. Sleep sounded good but unlikely. Not tonight. I was sure Rose was not sleeping. I bit my lip to stop myself from crying again.

We got back to the hotel and as soon as we walked in I could feel the tension. I loud voice bellowed from the front desk area, "Are you sure she's not here? Did she leave with a guy? Did she? I swear I will kill him!"

I looked up and there was a huge man towering over the counter in the face of the poor girl working the front desk tonight. Huge. Jake huge.


	32. Chapter 31 Lost in Her

**A/N: Thanks for all the reviews. Love it, love it, love it. Made me want to write all about love...**

EPOV

We walked into the hotel and all I wanted was to take a long shower with my girl and wrap her up in my arms in her big king sized bed for the rest of the night. But as soon as we stepped into the lobby, I could tell there was trouble. Some guy was screaming at the chick behind the counter. Not just any guy, some gigantic guy. He must have been close to six and half feet tall and had muscles on top of his muscles. Bella stiffened next to me for a second and then suddenly seemed to relax. Her eyes were focused on the front desk and Andre the Giant. She stormed over there, leaving me standing there like an idiot.

"Excuse me, I'm a police officer. Is there a problem here?" she said very calmly but authoritatively.

The poor girl behind the counter looked afraid for her life and didn't seem to think someone like Bella was going to be able to handle this guy. She had not had the pleasure of meeting Badass Bella. I walked up behind Bella and put my hand on her lower back.

The super-jacked up guy looked like he had a few too many steroids for dinner. He turned to Bella with eyes that looked almost black. He was breathing heavy and looked at her like he was considering throwing her across the room or not. I didn't know what I'd do if this guy tried something. He had to believe there was no way she could take him. He didn't know her, though. Badass Bella could take anyone, but I didn't really want him to make her prove it.

"Nothing's wrong, Officer. I was just leaving." He moved fast and bolted out the front doors.

We both stood there a second. Maybe he did know Badass Bella. Bella turned to the girl at the front desk. "Are you ok? Did he hurt you or anything? Do you know who that was?"

The girl was visibly shaken. She nodded yes when Bella asked if she was ok. She ran her hands over her hair, smoothing it out.

"He's some crazy ex-boyfriend of another girl who works here. He only screamed at me. God, Tanya needs to do something about him before he hurts someone. Before he hurts her." She shook her head and tried to compose herself.

_Tanya._

"Tanya," Bella repeated the thought in my head.

"Thanks for coming over to help. Are you really a police officer?" she asked, looking at Bella suspiciously.

"Tanya," she mumbled again.

"She's really a police officer, in Chicago. But you should call the police if he comes back." I grabbed Bella's hand and led her to the elevators. "Are you ok?" I whispered.

She looked at me with those big, brown eyes and nodded.

"Fucking Tanya," she said again.

"Looks like she has some relationship trouble on top of her conspiracy to kidnap people and steal diamonds."

Bella didn't say anything; she just looked trapped in her thoughts once again. We went up to her room and locked the door behind us. She took off my jacket and flopped in the chair, putting her hands on her head.

"I thought maybe we could take a shower. Relax. Then get some sleep." I figured it was worth a try.

"I thought that guy was Jake. For just a second, I thought he had found me here and was back for another round," she confessed, resting her elbows on her knees and holding her head in her hands.

_Jake._ I couldn't be more relieved that it wasn't him. I realized now that that was why she had stiffened when we first walked in. I hated that Jake made her afraid. She had told me about the abuse last night, about how he hit her, and broke her ribs once. She told me how he used to grab her by the arms so hard that she would have bruises for days. She told me how he had her on the ground, kicking her, the night of Emmett and Rosalie's engagement party. My huge ass brother needed help pulling Jake off of her. I hated that he had ever touched her, to cause pain or pleasure. No one would touch her again, except me, and I am all about pleasure, only pleasure.

I moved over by her and sat on the arm of the chair. I put my hand on her back. "Are you sure you're ok?"

She didn't answer right away. She continued to look down at the ground. Finally, she looked up at me, her eyes still red from crying earlier. She stood up and reached for my hand. "I think I shower sounds amazing."

Relief flooded my entire body. I was more than a little worried that I was going to lose her, that she would get all wrapped up in this again. We walked in the bathroom, and I started the water. I loved her in that blue dress but could not wait to see it crumpled on the floor. She was taking her watch off by the sink. I came up behind her and swept her hair to the side. I kissed her gently on the neck and let my fingers run down her arms. I saw her close her eyes in the mirror and tiny little goosebumps appeared on her arms. I was having the effect I wanted. I wanted this shower to wash away all the ugliness of the day. I wanted her to forget all of her worries, even if it was only for a few minutes. She would never have bruises on these arms ever again. I lifted one arm and kissed down to her wrist. I planted a kiss in the center of her palm and then placed her hand over her heart._ Mine._ No one would break her heart ever again.

I reached for the zipper of her dress and slowly unzipped it while I kissed down her shoulder. I slipped the dress off her shoulders and let it fall to the ground. There was my beautiful girl in nothing but a white lace push up bra and panties. I snaked my arms around her and lightly brushed my fingers on her bare stomach and then along her ribs. Never again would a man hit or kick her and break her ribs. She would never hurt here again. She still had her eyes closed, and I could hear her breathing hitch as I touched her. I moved my hands back to her shoulders and rubbed the tension in her neck. She moaned softly. I knew I was doing all the right things.

This bathroom rendezvous was going to be different than the last. This one was going to be slow and easy. This time I would be able to get lost in her - in her smell, in her sounds, in her taste. Bella's skin was so pale and so soft. I imagined it was like touching the most expensive ivory silk. Heaven. Before unclasping her bra, I pushed the thin straps off her shoulders. She opened her eyes and they met mine in the mirror. A sexy smile appeared on her face, and I again put my lips on her neck and then licked down that sweet curve to her shoulder. The room was filling with steam and the mirror was beginning to fog up. Her skin was beginning to warm up and there was a dampness to it from the steam. I unlatched her bra and slowly removed it from her body, letting it fall at her feet. My hands ached to reach around her and hold her perfect breasts. I restrained myself. Slow, we were going to go so slow this time. My fingers ran down her spine and I quickly followed them with kisses as I lowered myself to my knees behind her. The most erotic moan escaped her lips. I smiled as I continued kissing her lower back. I placed my hands on her hips and carefully slid my fingers under the sides of her delicate panties. She had pulled them off the last time we were together, and I was glad to be doing the undressing this time. She shifted her weight and seemed a little unsteady on her feet. I waited for her to regain her balance before I continued.

I loved everything about this woman. Every curve, every inch of her. I caressed her hip bones and pulled my hands out to run over her beautiful lower stomach. She moaned again, louder this time. I could imagine what this was doing to her. Ever so slowly, I began to lower the lace panties to the floor. Her perfect ass was right in front of me. She stepped out of her underwear, and I tossed them next to her bra. I stood back up letting my hands run up her legs as I went, then over her hips, and once I was standing, they made their way to her breasts. The mirror was completely fogged up now. I wanted to see them, to taste them. She seemed to know what I wanted and turned to face me. I went for her lips first, though. Kissing and licking. She was a goddess. A beautiful goddess that I wanted to worship forever. I pushed my tongue deeper in her mouth, and she welcomed me with another moan. Her hands made their way quickly to the buttons of my shirt, which she quickly peeled off me. Then she stopped kissing me to look down at my belt and with shaky hands unbuckled, unbuttoned, and unzipped me. I kicked off my shoes and stepped out of my pants and boxers. I managed to whip my socks off and throw them in the corner. Undressing me went fast, but that was all that was going to be fast about this. I lifted her gently onto the counter and she opened herself for me. I made love to her. This time we made love in the bathroom, slowly. Touching, tasting, feeling everything. There was no rush, no phone calls, no stopping. I was completely lost, lost in her. Only her.


	33. Chapter 32 No Sleep

**A/N: Thanks for all the follows and reviews. Keep 'em coming. Love to hear what you guys think is going to happen. Trying to get a chapter out a day. Enjoy...**

BPOV

_Edward. _It was the only word in my head. He was the only thought in my mind.

I have never had a man undress me like that before. Usually guys want to get you naked as fast as possible. It was usually treated like a nuisance, not an experience. What Edward did was the most sensual and erotic thing I have ever experienced, and that's saying a lot considering I had sex in a public bathroom today.

After he made love to me, he pulled me into the shower and washed me. He washed my hair and then lathered me up with the fancy shower gels the hotel provided. He rinsed me off and kissed me all over while doing it. He was simply the greatest man and lover on the planet. My brain needed the break, and he made my body feel alive, for the second time tonight. This time it was slow and romantic. It was seriously the most amazing hour of my life.

He dried me off and wrapped me up in one of the giant, super-fluffy Hale Tower towels. I was sitting on the bed, brushing out my hair while he called Emmett to let him know we were back. Em was going to spend the night in Edward's room. He wanted to talk to me so I set down my brush and took the phone from Edward, who was standing in front of me with nothing on but a towel. _Edward._

"Hey, Em," I said as I watched Edward drop his towel.

"Bells, I know you want to help tomorrow, but I think it's best if you stay here. Watch for them to drop her off. They didn't leave any information about how we would get her back, just that I'm supposed to put the necklace in a black briefcase, take it on the monorail, and leave it under the seat in the back at exactly eight. I'm going to do that and hurry back here. I don't think I can be around my parents tomorrow until Rose is back. I need you. Will you stay with me until she comes back?" His voice began to tremble, and I could feel the lump in my throat growing bigger by the second. Edward looked at me with a worried expression as he slipped on his boxer briefs.

"Anything you want, Em. I'll do anything you want." I wanted to cry again. What if she didn't come back? What if they didn't give her back? He and I were going to need each other tomorrow.

"Thanks, Bells. I gotta go-" He hung up before the last word was out of his mouth. I imagined him bent over crying his eyes out. I flopped back on the bed and covered my eyes with my arm. I didn't want to cry again.

Edward was there right away. His hands were on my legs. His lips were on my legs, he kissed up my thigh. He pushed the towel up and as much as I wanted to let him have his way with me so I could forget, I put my hands in his hair.

"Stop," I pleaded softly.

He crawled up on the bed with me and lay next to me on his side. He rested his head on his hand and played with my hair and kissed my bare shoulder.

"We aren't going to worry about it until tomorrow. We are going to hold each other in this bed and then sleep." He ran his hand across my chest.

I rolled my eyes. He wanted me to push all this out of my mind for the rest of the night, but I didn't see how I could do it. Even if he entertained my with his hands and his mouth all night long. I used his phone and texted Mike, letting him know Emmett was staying at the hotel and could use a friend. I sat up and walked over to my suitcase. I pulled out underwear and a t-shirt. My hand touched the gun case buried under some clothes. I had brought my service revolver, because part of me was nervous about being in the same city as Jake. A lot of good it would have done me up here if that had been him in the hotel lobby tonight. That guy was built just like Jake. I hated Jake, not only for what he had done in the past, but for getting in between me and Edward. Edward and I would have been together this whole time if he hadn't come to Chicago. I wanted to shoot him just for that. I slipped the panties on and took off the towel. Edward's hands were on me, fondling my breasts. His mouth on my neck.

"Stop," I said without much conviction.

"Come lie down with me," he whispered. He led me back to the bed. He put his hands up in the air. "I promise I just want to hold you. Maybe kiss you a little, but I swear that's it."

I smiled. He was just so damn cute. He jumped into bed and lifted up the sheets for me to crawl in with him. I cuddled up to him and we tangled our legs up together.

"Your brother's so depressed. I almost think I should send you to him to make him feel better," I said as I rubbed my hand up and down his perfectly chiseled chest. My head started shaking as Edward began laughing, hard.

"What?" I asked, lifting up off him.

He kept laughing and then tried to breathe. "I had a vision when you said that. I pictured me and Emmett cuddling in bed in our underwear. I don't think that is going to make him feel better. I know that I would need serious therapy after something like that." He started laughing again.

"Why would you cuddle him in your underwear?" I was so confused.

"Baby, I'm pretty sure that you are the only one I am capable of making better. This..." he pulled me against him, "...is how I make you feel better. I don't know how to help anyone else."

"Edward, you have no idea. The way you handle your mother. The way you handled my mother today; you were perfect."

"Women, Bella. I handle women well. My dad, my brother. I have never made their lives easier. Emmett has always taken care of me. Not the other way around."

I was going to lose this fight tonight. I didn't want to argue. "Ok, never mind. I know a way you can help him tomorrow, though. Emmett doesn't want to be around your mom and dad tomorrow, not until Rose is back. You would definitely be helping him out if you got them out of here. I could give you some ideas for sightseeing or something."

Edward rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. "Oh, you're killing me here. Seriously? Me and my parents sightseeing? Bella. In case you haven't noticed, my father doesn't like me enough to want to spend an entire day with me."

"For Emmett? For your brother who is going to be climbing the walls tomorrow until Rosalie is let go? For your brother, can you do it for your brother?"

He sighed loudly and wrapped his arms back around me. "For you. But you will owe me big time."

Now it was my turn to laugh. "I owe you because you have to spend time with your own family tomorrow?"

"Yes, and I am going to make you pay dearly, I promise you that. But I will not be had in any more bathrooms! I mean, I deserve to be made love to in a bed once and a while, you know. You and your kinky obsession with bathroom sex all the sudden. I didn't know this about you in Chicago. I know you liked a morning shower together every once and a while but..."

"Stop it! You are so obnoxious!" I slapped him on the chest.

I lifted my head and kissed him on the lips.

"So obnoxious, so funny, too sexy. The list of adjectives goes on and on."

We laughed and kissed some more. It wasn't even ten, but Edward was still on Chicago time, which made it feel more like midnight. He started yawning. As we got quiet, I could tell he would be out sooner than later.

"I love you," I whispered before he fell asleep.

"Good, because it would suck to love you this much if you to just wanted to be friends or only wanted me to service you in well-tiled bathrooms," he joked with his eyes closed.

I laughed and kissed his jaw. "Sleep well, Mr. Hilarious."

Edward was asleep almost immediately. I could feel his breathing slow and his body relax under mine. I laid there wanting to sleep but unable to master it. I waited about a half hour and then quietly slipped out of bed. I grabbed my t-shirt and threw it on. I found some jeans out of my suitcase and sat on the chair by the bed. I watched Edward sleep. He looked so beautiful. His bronze hair was a crazy mess because he didn't even bother with it after the shower. His long eyelashes were so noticeable when his eyes were closed. He had such a devilish spirit but looked like an angel.

I looked over at the table closest to the door and there sat the key card to Rosalie's room. I didn't know why but I felt like I should go up there. I was awake because I knew she was awake somewhere. Being in her room might make me feel closer to her. I stood up and rummaged through the bags quietly to find the key to the elevator. I snatch up all the keys and jotted a quick note that I placed on the pillow by Edward. Just in case he woke up, I didn't want him to freak out. I snuck quietly out of the room.

I rode up the elevator in a fog. I was tired and drained. The doors opened, and I reached in to my pocket for Rose's key. I stepped out and almost had a heart attack.

"Holy shit!" I screamed. "Mike what the fuck are you doing up here?" Mike fucking Newton was standing in the long penthouse hallway.

"Bella, what the hell are you doing up here?" he answered my question with a question. I was in no mood.

"You scared the fucking shit out of me. I came up here because I was thinking about Rose. What the hell are you doing up here?" I noticed he was holding a shirt in his hands. Rosalie's shirt.

"Um, Emmett asked me to come up here and get something of Rosalie's. He, ah, couldn't bear to come up here himself. He's pretty messed up."

"I know. I feel bad. I wish I could do something. Maybe I should come back down with you. We could all hang out and wallow together."

"No, I think he just wants it to be us guys. I figure we'll play some cards. Then I'll try and get him to sleep. So..." Mike looked down at the ground.

"No, I get it. It's good you're here for him." I leaned my back against the wall and slid down to the floor. "I hate feeling so helpless. All day, I just felt like I was doing no good. Rosalie needs me, and I can't do anything. Emmett needs me, but I don't know how to help him either." I held my head in my hands and fought the tears that were coming again.

Mike sat next to me and put his hand on my back. "Bells, everything is going to be fine. Emmett's going to do what he needs to do tomorrow, and this whole thing is going to be over. Rosalie will return, and they'll get married and live happily ever after." He sounded so sure.

"You sound like Edward. He's been trying to tell me that all day. I don't know. I mean the fucking Volturi have her. I mean, they could do some serious shit."

"What do you mean the Volturi have her?" Mike's voice dropped.

"I went to check out this lead we had on Aro Volturi and let's just say everything became clear," I said, turning to look at him.

Mike's face turned ghostly white. "What do you mean you checked out a lead on Aro? What did you do, Isabella?"

I hated that he used my full name, like he was talking to me like I was a misbehaving child. "I pretended to be someone from Hale Enterprises and asked him if he wanted to buy the necklace, just to see what he'd say,"

"Jesus, Bella! What the fuck were you thinking? You fucking talked to Aro Volturi?" Mike stood up and began pacing in front of me. Mike, even more than Emmett, had his share of cases against the Volturi family go up in smoke. He knew all to well what they were capable of. He knew how dangerous this had become with them involved.

"It wasn't the smartest thing I've done all day. Emmett was pretty mad, too. I'm surprised he didn't tell you."

Mike was breathing hard and still was pacing. "What did he say? What did he say that makes you believe he has her?"

"He didn't let me know he has her. He said something like, if he wanted the necklace still he would just take it, not pay for it. But the real kicker is we saw that one of the girls who works here also works for him. Then I knew."

Mike stopped pacing. "Who?"

"Some girl that works the front desk. Tanya. She works at Kings and Queens and started here about a month ago. What a coincidence, huh?"

"Who else have you told?" He was angry.

I couldn't remember who I told. I didn't understand why that was relevant. "No one. I mean Edward knows, he was with me. We told Emmett there was someone but didn't tell him who. He didn't care. He just wants to do what they say and be done with this."

"Did you talk to this girl? Are you planning on talking to her?"

"No. Emmett said to drop it, so I have. What? Do you think I should talk to her? I thought about it, I could threaten her a little, see if she breaks." I tried to figure out where he was going with this. Part of me wanted to talk to her, to do to her what I did to Royce. He sang like a bird maybe she would, too. Royce, I told Royce about her as well. I figured she probably was not kept in the loop. She was a small fish, a pawn, not one of the big players.

"No. No. Better you did what Emmett said. I gotta go." He pressed the button for the elevator.

"Yeah, Emmett is probably waiting for you. Tell him I said he should try to get some sleep." I smiled a half smile, I knew Emmett and I were both in for a long, sleepless night.

"Yeah." Mike didn't return my smile as the doors opened, and he stepped inside.

I got up off the floor and opened the door to Rosalie's room.


	34. Chapter 33 Brotherly Love

**A/N: This one is for fun. A little fun before things heat up... **

EPOV

I didn't want to wake up, but I rolled and my body must have realized it was alone in the bed. I swished my hand around on her empty side of the bed. When I opened my eyes, I saw the note on the pillow.

_Went to penthouse for a little bit. Needed to feel close to her. Back before you miss me. - Bella_

_One, two, three. Nope, she was a liar._ I missed her and she was not back. I sat up and raked my hands through my hair. It was sticking up in directions that defied all the laws of gravity. I looked at the clock - twelve thirty-five. I switched on the light by the bed and got up to use the bathroom. I smiled as I walked in, knowing this was my new favorite place. The bathroom in Room 1805 of Hale Tower Seattle. I should take a picture of it before I leave. Bella would love that.

I thought about turning on the TV, but I've never been much of a TV person. I wondered how long she'd been gone for. She had left so silently. I noticed her computer bag on the floor by the dresser. I decided I would download my pictures on her laptop. I grabbed all the stuff and after turning her laptop on shoved my memory card into the reader.

I had a little over a hundred and twenty pictures on this card. Most of them were pictures of Bella. She'd love that, too. I made her a file in iPhoto and labeled it _Pictures of You._ Hopefully she wouldn't delete the whole thing. Some of these were really good. Pictures from when we first got together, pictures of her in all green when we went to the St. Patrick's Day parade, pictures of her laughing, blushing, looking sexy as hell. Then there were the pictures from the last twenty-four hours. God, the pictures of her on the bed turned out better than I thought.

_Shit. Where the hell was she? _

I closed the computer. If I kept looking at those pictures, I would be a fucking sexual predator when she got back.

I decided to text Emmett, to see if he was still awake. Maybe a quick check in would make him feel better. Bella seemed to think I could do some good.

_**You awake?**_

I waited to see if he'd reply, which he did, quickly.

_You ok? What's wrong?_

I sniggered, he would think I was texting him because I was in trouble.

_**Nothing. Can't sleep. Just wanted to see if you were ok.**_

_Me either. Newton showed up to keep me company, but he already fell asleep. Watching Fight Club. Wish I could hit someone._

Maybe I would turn the TV on. Seemed like fate that it was on.

_**What channel? **_

_28 - Where's Bells?_

I didn't know why this nickname bothered me. I had never thought to call her Bells. _Bells._ It sounded silly. She was Bella. Beautiful Bella. I liked Isabella, but she hated it, I could tell. I figured out today that she must hate it because it was what her mother called her. Her mom only called her Isabella, no nicknames. At least Renee had enough sense not to call her Bells.

_**Bella's upstairs, missing Rosalie.**_

I didn't know if I should send that or not. Seeing Rosalie's name might make him more sad. I figured he should know he's not alone. Her friend was missing her almost as much as he was. I hit send. He didn't respond back right away. I waited. I turned on Fight Club. Finally my phone buzzed.

_I wish I could hit somebody. _

_**Hit Newton.**_

_Too easy. Want a little bit of a fight._

_**We could go wake up Dad.**_

It was a bad joke, but it made me smile. Emmett, of course, would never hit our father.

_Be nice. He apologized. That was major._

This was true. My father actually told me he was sorry, but part of me kept thinking it was more for my mother than for me. I guessed I should take what I could get.

_**True. Didn't apologize for the last 26 years, but I guess I shouldn't be picky.**_

_Life is too short. Forgive._

I stared at my phone. I felt bad that I was whining about our stupid father when his fiancee was being held for ransom.

_**I know. You've always been the smart one.**_

He responded back quickly.

_Smarter, faster, stronger, better looking..._

I laughed. All that was true but one.

_**Nice try. I have always been the better looking Cullen brother and you know it. **_

_OMG! LOL, LMAO, ROTFLMAO, ROTFLMFAO!_

I smiled at his response.

_**Are you a 12 year old girl? OMG? Really? And you know you can't top me in the looks dept.**_

_You have that hair thing going but I have the dimples - chicks love dimples._

He was going to try and beat me with his dimples? No way.

_**I was told today I put off an I'm too sexy vibe. Dimples are not sexy. **_

Em was really quick to respond.

_Are you too sexy for your shirt?_

_So sexy it hurts?_

I couldn't respond fast enough, I was laughing too hard that I couldn't type. He sent another before me.

_Do you do your little dance on the catwalk? That's not sexy, that's gay._

I cracked up. Right Said Fred, only Emmett would think that way. Just then, Bella walked in. I was amazed at how good that made me feel.

She looked surprised to see me awake. "What are you laughing at?"

"Emmett and I are texting some brotherly love." I stood up and kissed her. She looked so tired.

"You're making things a little better for him, huh?" she asked, setting her keys on the dresser.

"Trying." I smiled at her. She was right, maybe I was capable of making things a little better for my brother. My phone buzzed in my hand.

_Dude I was kidding. I don't think you're gay._

I laughed again. Bella's arrival had delayed my response so much so that he thought I was mad.

_**I'm not mad. What do you think? I'm a pussy? Bella's back.**_

"What are you guys talking about?" Bella asked, curious.

"Who's better looking, me or Emmett? Honestly, don't say me just because you love me." I wanted her unbiased opinion, if that was possible.

"This is how you're cheering your brother up?" she said, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't answer my question with a question, you know I hate that," I teased, using her words against her.

She giggled. "I'll do better than my opinion. Before I came to Seattle, Rosalie emailed me a warning. She let me know that Emmett's younger brother was supposedly trouble but quite the ladies man. She described you as even better looking than Em." She winked at me but then bit her lip. "Don't tell him that, though."

"It's our secret." I smiled but inside I was fist pumping the air like a wild man. Even Rosalie thought I was better looking, I knew it. Dimples, shimples.

_I'll let you go. You big pussy._

_**OMG! ABCD, QRSTUV.**_

_I'll give you funnier._

_**I'll take it. Good night buddy.**_

_Thanks for checking in. I really mean it._

_**Anytime. **_

I felt better knowing that I had distracted him from his bad thoughts for a few minutes.

"Is he better?" Bella asked, pulling me from my thoughts. I set my phone down and walked up behind her where she was standing by the desk.

"I think he was distracted for a couple minutes. Mike's staying with him." I could see her looking at her computer. "I loaded my pictures on there for you. Since 99% of them are pictures of you, I figured you would like to see them. But don't just delete them, they are still my work of art." I wrapped my arms around her and rested my chin on her shoulder. She opened her laptop and clicked on iPhoto. She saw the folder I made for her.

"A hundred and twenty-four pictures! What in the world are you doing with that many pictures of me?" She opened the folder and started scrolling through them.

"It's the price you pay for being so photogenic." I placed a little kiss on her neck. "Are you okay? Did it help to go upstairs?" I was worried about her again.

She sighed and leaned back into me, putting her arms on mine. "A little. Not much. I'm fine, though."

She turned around and pressed herself against me. I kissed the top of her head.

"Maybe we should go back to bed. You look so tired, baby." I rubbed my hands up and down her back. She lifted her head, and we began kissing. We were kissing in a way that was going to make it very difficult for me to go to sleep. With her body up against mine, she could feel my problem.

"I feel tired, but I can't sleep. Maybe you can exhaust me." Her eyebrow shot up again, seductively.

Just what I wanted to hear. "You have to take me to bed this time, though. I don't think I can do it standing up anymore."

"Great. Mr. Hilarious is back. Oh, how you were so _not_ missed," she said as she pushed me on the bed.


	35. Ch 34 Pictures of Me & Him & Her & Him

BPOV

I was running downtown by the Space Needle. The Seattle Center was crowded, really crowded. There were people everywhere. I was trying to make my way through the crowd and to the monorail station. I felt an overwhelming sense of fear. They were going to kill her if I didn't get there on time. I reached for my gun on my hip, but it wasn't there. I wasn't wearing my holster; I didn't have my gun.

_Shit._

How was I going to save her without my gun? For a second, I thought I saw her in the crowd. I saw the dress, the green dress from the other night. It looked like Jake was standing next to her, pushing her through the crowd. I pushed past some men in suits and grabbed her. But when she turned around it wasn't Rosalie, it was Tanya and the guy next to her wasn't Jacob, it was the guy from the lobby.

_Fuck_.

I looked at the monorail that was ready to depart the station. I could see in and there was Rose. She was crying and looking right at me with pleading eyes. "Save me!_" s_he was screaming, I could see her but not hear her.

The monorail started to leave. I couldn't get to her. I could see a man standing next to her. I couldn't see his face but he was holding a gun to her head. She was screaming, "Please! Please! Save me!" She pounded her fists on the glass, terror wild in her eyes. The monorail zipped off, and I heard the gunshot.

I bolted upright in bed, breathing heavy with tears streaming down my face. I looked over at Edward, who was sleeping soundly. I rubbed my face with my hands and climbed out of bed. I went in the bathroom and splashed some water on face. I was going to have to entertain myself the rest of the night because there was no way I was going back to sleep now. The look on Rosalie's face in my dream would definitely haunt me. I walked back in the room and slipped back into my underwear and t-shirt. I looked at the clock next to the bed - three forty-nine. A little less than four hours to go. In four hours, Emmett would drop off the necklace and we would wait for them to release Rose. Who knew how long that would take. I sat in the chair by the desk and flipped open my laptop. I couldn't watch TV with Edward sleeping, but I could check my email, surf the web. I left the light on in the bathroom, and it cast a soft glow in the whole room. Edward was back to his angelic self, sleeping with his arms curled under his pillow, lying on his stomach. The sheets rested right on his hips, leaving his back exposed. His skin looked golden in this light. I needed to look away or I was going to have to wake the poor boy up. He deserved to sleep. He had earned a few hours of rest.

I turned on my computer and waited for it to come to life. I hit the internet button and signed up for my free WiFi. I surfed the internet for a half hour, filling my head with all the useless news they put out there. I clicked on my mail and deleted all the junk. There was a message from my partner back in Chicago. He had been giving me a hard time for a couple weeks now, ever since he heard I was maid of honor in the wedding. He said he was going to do whatever it took to get pictures of me in a dress. He had to see it, because no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't picture it in his mind. His email let me know there were bets that I was going to wuss out at the last second and walk down the aisle in pants under the dress. I shook my head and thought about writing him back about what had really been going on here. Maybe I could get some feedback from somebody who could totally be impartial but decided against it. He would not be happy with me for not getting the local cops involved. Peter was very by the book. His wife, Charlotte, always joked that he would arrest her for jaywalking given the chance.

I closed out of my email and clicked on iPhoto. I had a picture of me in a dress, not one that I would ever show anyone, especially the guys at the station. I opened up the file Edward had created for me. _Pictures of You, _that was what he had named this monster file. One hundred and twenty-four pictures. Who needed one hundred pictures of themselves? A hundred and twenty-four, taken when? We were together two months and now, for one day. That was like two pictures for every day he'd known me. Some of these needed to be deleted, I was sure.

I started from the beginning. There were pictures of me from our date at the Art Institute. He made me stand by one of the lions outside. It seemed so touristy. I hammed it up a little, giving the lion a little love. There was one of me touching his paw and looking enamored. _Embarrassing._ I moved on. There were pictures of me at his apartment cooking him dinner one night. I remembered making him my famous mushroom ravioli. His kitchen was kind of a disaster, and he seriously owned one pot and one pan. We made due. It turned out great, but I swore we would only cook at my place from that night forward. He took so many pictures of me that night. Pictures of me cooking, pictures of me laughing, pictures of me eating. I looked really happy. That was a really good night. I scanned through some more. I couldn't believe he had kept all these pictures of me from a couple months ago. I was surprised that he didn't just delete them all after he thought I was using him. I flew through a bunch. Me, me, me, me. Me sitting on his couch, me at Navy Pier, me at my kitchen table.

Then I got to yesterday. Me, Alice, and Rosalie. _Rosalie._ She was exquisite. There were a few of us talking together by the front desk and then one of us posed, arms around each other. Rosalie was standing in between me and Alice. We were all smiling. Well, I was kind of smiling. I was trying to smile. I was bright-fucking-red in the face. When I had seen Edward that afternoon, I thought I was having some terrible nightmare. Little did I know that was really going to be the best part of this whole real nightmare. I clicked to the next picture. The knocked over table in the penthouse. I forgot all about these. There a good twenty pictures of the penthouse suite.

I went through them slowly. I knew I wasn't going to see anything new. I had been up there for a couple hours just walking through the whole thing over and over. Couldn't hurt to go over it one more time, pointless maybe, but what the hell. Someone was waiting for her. He knew she wasn't going to be there when he got there. He looked at the magazines. I stopped at the pictures of the coffee table, the magazines not perfectly stacked. He had a cigarette on the balcony, maybe a couple cigarettes. He was throwing the butts over the balcony, but one fell into the planter. I stopped at that picture. There it was, the cigarette butt. Not Royce's cigarette. He swore he wasn't in that room, and I believed him. Then Rose and Emmett came up, and Emmett thought she was going to let him stay. She probably was going to let him stay. She was crazy to think they could keep their hands off each other for a whole week. Then Royce called her. Royce texted her to meet him in his rose petal covered candlelit den o' love. She probably laughed herself silly on the way back up after turning him down as nicely as she could. She walked in, and he knew she was coming. He grabbed her, she resisted. She fought, knocked over the table in the struggle. It was nine forty-five maybe. He knocked her out somehow. Knocked her out but didn't leave with her until after eleven. What did he do with her until eleven? Maybe waited until it was safe to leave. Less people around at eleven-thirty than at ten. So he stayed in the suite with her until he could carry her out of here. The guy, the huge guy from the lobby. That could definitely be the guy who carried her out of here. He was big, so big. There just weren't that many guys as big as that. Tanya and her crazy ex? But why was he here today yelling and making a scene if he and Tanya kidnapped Rose yesterday?

I rubbed my eyes. I was so damn tired. My brain wasn't working. Maybe he worked for Aro Volturi as well. He looked like he could be one of the bouncers or something. That could be how he and Tanya hooked up. Aro sent the two of them in to grab Rosalie, but their little relationship drama was getting in the way. Maybe crazy ex-boyfriend was the guy waiting in the suite for Rose. He grabbed her, knocked her out. He waited for Tanya to give him the green light to get her out of the building. Then what? I had nothing. I had no idea where they would take her. They could hold her anywhere. The Volturi brothers could hide people where we would never find them. My head hurt.

I clicked to the next picture, me on the balcony, looking so sad. Looking out over the city. Rose was somewhere out there but was the tiny needle in the gigantic haystack. I clicked forward. I groaned. Me and my mother, standing outside her house. She had her arm around my waist and was smiling so big. Edward had taken three of us together. My mom used to be so beautiful. She was still beautiful, but she was damaged. When my father died, part of her died right along with him. Now, she was a shell, a shell she kept full of alcohol. It hurt for different reasons to look at these pictures, so I clicked ahead.

Me on the bed. Skip, skip, skip. He must have taken a more than a dozen. These would be his favorite. I looked up at him again. He was in the same position, looking so peaceful. I envied his easy sleep. I looked back at the screen. The next picture was me on the park bench. My hand was up, these could be deleted for sure. Then there he was. I had not taken great shots of him. I laughed at the little grin on his face. I hadn't zoomed in on him or anything, not that I would know how using his fancy camera. I clicked through a couple and noticed he wasn't centered. I cropped his face. Perfect. He was so handsome. There should be a hundred pictures of him not me. He accused me of being photogenic, but he was the one that should be in front of the camera not behind it. I thought about how he actually thought I might not say he was better looking than Emmett.

I laughed quietly. Emmett was so cute. Cuddly, teddy bear cute. He had the cutest dimples, but Edward was smoking hot. Gorgeous, not cute. I clicked on the next picture of him. I hit the button to zoom in and accidently clicked the wrong spot on the picture. I went to undo my mistake when I saw her. I stopped and looked at the screen for a good minute.

Tanya.

I hit the button to zoom back out. I had taken a picture of Edward with the street behind him. On the corner by the Market was a woman getting out of a cab. It was the side of her face, but I was sure it was her. I clicked on the next picture of Edward and could still see her in the background. She turned her head in this one, so I could see her clearly. It was absolutely her. I clicked on the next one. Her back was turned as she stepped up in the sidewalk, but there was someone next to her. I clicked on the next picture of Edward. There they were in the background. He had a hand on her back and was whispering in her ear. I zoomed in. I stared at the screen and felt my heart in my throat.

_No, no, no, no. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck!_


	36. Chapter 35 Big Mistake

EPOV

"Fuck!"

The emotion in Bella's voice woke me with a start. I rubbed my eyes and climbed out of bed over to her sitting at the desk. She slammed the laptop closed.

"What? What's wrong?" I asked, stumbling to her.

She grabbed my face in her hands. "You have to stay here. Okay? I need you to stay here and wait for me to call you."

She had this look on her face that I had never seen before. It was freaking me out. She let go of me and was slipping into her jeans before I could even answer.

"Yeah, but where are you going? What's wrong?"

She got her jeans on and went to her suitcase. She pulled out a black case and opened it up. Her gun. She slipped her gun in the back waistband of her jeans. I felt my hands begin to shake.

"What the hell is going on? Where are you going? Why do you need your gun?" I was in panic mode.

"I have to check something out. I have to see something. I need you to stay in this room. I need to know that you are in here and that you are out of trouble, OK? Please." She walked over to me and kissed me hard on the lips. I wanted to grab her and hold her. She hadn't explained herself well enough.

She walked over to the dresser and grabbed up the keys and her phone. I found my boxers and put them on and looked for my pants. They were in the bathroom.

"I'll stay here, but you need to tell me what's going on. Please," I pleaded as I hurried to the bathroom to get my pants. I knew she wasn't going to let me go with her but part of me wanted to so badly.

"I can't say it. I can't say it right now, but I think I know who took Rose. I think I know where she is. I need to check something upstairs and then I will call you, and then we'll tell Emmett. I promise you, I will be fine as long as you stay in this room."

I couldn't believe my ears. I thought we knew who took Rosalie. I thought we had this figured out. "How do you know where she is? We have to tell Emmett now. He needs to know."

"I need to check this out first. I cannot tell him until I know for sure. It's better that way."

She was so determined. I could see she was going to do this her way.

"Call me," I said. I hugged her to me for a second. The gun made me so fucking nervous. Why did she need a gun unless she thought she would be around someone else who had a gun. _Shit._ I held her for another second. "Be safe."

"I promise," she said as I let her go. She was out the door like lightning.

I looked at the clock - five o'clock. It was just three hours before Emmett would be dropping off the necklace. Now, Bella was running off with her gun to find Rosalie. I went back into the bathroom and grabbed my shirt. I sat on the bed buttoning it up. I didn't know how I was supposed to just sit here when she was doing God knows what. I turned on the TV, there was no way on hell I was going back to sleep now. I ran my hands through my hair. I pulled all the pillows over by me and propped them against the headboard. I scooted onto the bed and rested my back against the pillows. I flipped through the channels. Early morning news shows, boring. Infomercials, more boring. Weather channel, MTV, reruns of The Partridge Family, Jon and Kate Plus Eight. I settled on The Fugitive. _Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones, love them._ I tried to focus, but it wasn't working. I shifted the pillows behind my back. I crossed my legs then uncrossed them. This wasn't working. I couldn't stop thinking about Bella and her fucking gun. Tommy Lee was shooting his gun. I couldn't stand to hear the sound. I switched the TV off. _Fuck_.

I picked up my phone. Emmett would be awake. I should call him. She had said we would need to call him once she got back but what would it hurt if he and I waited here together. I texted him first just to see if he was awake.

_**You awake?**_

He wrote back fairly quickly.

_What's up?_

I called him since he was awake. "Hey, you should come up here."

"Why?"

"It's Bella. She, um, thinks she figured out what happened to Rosalie. She thinks she knows where she is." I was hoping he would be happy about this news and not mad.

"What are you talking about, Edward?" _Shit._ He was mad.

"I don't know, I woke up and she told me to stay in the room and she said she had to check something out upstairs, but she thinks she knows where Rose is. This is good news, right? I mean we could get her back now instead of later."

"Or they could fucking kill both of them, Edward! What the hell is she thinking? Where does she think she is?" He wasn't taking this news well at all. Maybe I should have waited for Bella to call me, then I would be calling him with good news, good solid news.

"I don't know. She wouldn't tell me. But she took her gun."

"Fuck!" Emmett was livid. I could hear Mike asking him questions. I heard Emmett answer. "Bella thinks she figured out where Rose is. She went after her on her own. Edward just let her go."

"Em, I didn't let her go. I don't tell my girlfriend what to do. She is an adult and a cop, man. She knows what she's fucking doing." I meant it, but suddenly there was this creeping doubt taking over. What if she did get hurt? What if she and Rosalie ended up dead?

"I'm coming up there. Did she take her phone at least?"

"Yes, she said she would call me." I started to pace the room. I let her go. I let her go by herself, and now I realized how stupid that was.

He hung up. Didn't even say goodbye. _Great. I think I just fucked things up._ Emmett was mad and now Bella was going to be mad. I quickly dialed Bella. Maybe I could get her before Emmett got her. It went to her voicemail. _Damn it._

I kept pacing back and forth, raking my hand through my hair. I tried her again and again but only got her voicemail. I called Emmett, but before he could pick up there was a loud knock at the door. I opened it and hung up my phone at the same time.

"Fucking shit, man. She's not answering her phone. Damn it!" Emmett came busting in and chucked his phone across the room.

"Em, relax. This is Bella. She knows what she's doing." I was trying to convince myself as much as him.

"What if she walks into something she can't control? She has no back up. She has one weapon with limited ammo. What the hell is she going to do if there is more than one bad guy, huh? Then what? What if she gets into something with them and Rosalie gets-" His voice kept rising and then caught.

"She isn't going to put herself or Rosalie in danger. She wouldn't. She has been in pain all day about Rose. She loves her. She would not let her get hurt. Maybe she is just checking things out, making sure she's right. Then she'll call the cops."

"You don't know what she's doing. You didn't even convince her to call me before you let her go." His face was flushed with anger and fear.

"What did you want me to do? Hold on to her, pin her down? Stand in front of the door and tell her to shoot me if she wants me to move? Fuck, Em." I put my hands on my head in frustration. _What the hell was I supposed to do?_

He sat on the bed and held his head in his hands.

"Where's Mike? I bet he's pissed too."

"He said he would stay in the room, in case she tried to call me there. And yeah, he's pissed."

I sat down next to him on the bed. I didn't touch him, afraid he might rip my arm off.

"What did she find out? What happened that made her think she figured it out?" He turned to look at me.

"I don't know, I was asleep. I woke up because she yelled out. The next thing I know she's putting clothes on and grabbing her gun and telling me not to leave this room." It all happened so fast. I didn't have enough time to process the whole thing, let alone get her to tell me everything and stop her from going.

"What was she doing?" he asked.

"She was sitting at the desk." I stood up and walked over there. "She slammed the computer shut." I opened it and waited for it to come to life.

Emmett walked over and stood behind me. The screen was filled with a picture of me. One of the pictures she took of me tonight after dinner. It wasn't a particularly good picture. She didn't center me in the frame. I was kind of out of focus.

"She was looking at a picture of you and figured out where Rosalie was?" Emmett asked aloud the question that was going through my head.

I looked at the whole picture. Did she see Rose in the picture? Was Bella headed back to that street corner? I looked and saw it. I clicked and zoomed. There she was. Tanya, the accomplice to the crime, and standing next to her with his hand on her back and his mouth to her ear.

Mike fucking Newton.

"Holy fucking shit," was the only thing I could say.

"Is that Mike?" Emmett asked. I realized he had no idea who Tanya was.

"That's the girl, Em. That is the fucking girl who works here and at Kings and Queens. That is the girl who we assumed was helping the bad guys. That's the girl that walked by Newton this afternoon like he was fucking nobody. Mike said he didn't notice her."

Emmett stood still for a full ten seconds while that information sunk in and then ran out of the room like a bat out of hell. I ran after him. He didn't even bother with the elevator he went right to the stairs. We ran down the one flight and busted into the hallway. Emmett pulled out the key to the room and swung open the door ready to kill. I ran up behind him. Emmett was searching the bathroom, but I knew he wasn't going to find anyone. Mike was not waiting in the room. Mike was gone. Mike was going to find Bella, and she didn't know he was coming.

_FUCK._

**A/N: So did you know? Some of you knew. It's not so easy to leave a trail without making it so obvious at the same time. But why would he do this, that is the real question... Give me some love, review!**


	37. Chapter 36 The Rescue

BPOV

I couldn't believe this was happening. Mike. Mike fucking took Rose and let us all believe she was in danger. What the hell was going on? As soon as I saw his face I knew. It was him. He left dinner that night before everyone else. He smoked, not often, but when he was stressed out or playing cards, he could smoke a whole pack. He called Emmett that night right before Emmett and Rosalie walked into the suite. He was so adamant about not calling the police, about not looking into this whole thing, just do what the kidnappers wanted and Rosalie wouldn't be hurt. He was standing in the hallway tonight but not by the door to the Presidential Suite. No, he was down the other side. He hadn't walked out of the Presidential Suite towards the elevators. He was in the middle of the elevators and the Executive Suite._ Fuck_.

He was with Tanya. Tanya. Tanya and her giant ex-boyfriend. Tanya who could pass for Rose easily, especially in black and white, with her face obscured. Her giant ass fucking ex-boyfriend could easily carry her out of the building, so we would think for sure that someone took Rose out of the hotel, so we wouldn't look for her in the hotel, so we wouldn't fucking look across the fucking hall in the fucking Executive Suite. Rosalie never left the building. It would have been way to risky to get her out. What did I think, he carried her down forty fucking flights of stairs? That he carried a passed out chick in his arms in the elevator and nobody fucking noticed? What was I thinking all this time? She never left the floor. They just moved her across the hall. _Fuck!_

Why Mike would do this was the part I couldn't figure out. Why would Mike need to steal the diamond necklace? I left Edward with little to no information and I felt bad but I needed to check out this new theory before I told anyone. I couldn't say it, out loud. I just couldn't. Emmett will kill him. Mike was a dead person as soon as Emmett learned the truth. I needed to check the Executive Suite, get back to Edward, and then we would need to call Emmett He could safely secure Mike. But I needed to be sure, and I needed to get some backup.

As I rode the elevator to the lobby, I called Eric, my former partner. I was going to try and do this the right way for once. He picked up after a few rings.

"Hello?" he answered half awake.

"Eric, Bella. Bella Swan."

"Bella? What's going on, Shorty? You forget Seattle is two hours behind Chicago?"

"Sorry, Eric. I'm in Seattle actually. I need your help. I know you're going to be pissed at me, but I need you to listen and I need you to help me."

Eric listened quietly while I described the events of yesterday. I told him what I thought happened and why I thought so. When I finished he still remained silent.

"Eric, are you there?"

"Bella, what the fuck?"

"I know. I need you to know that you will help me here. You are one of the few people I trust."

"I'm not sure what to even do," he said, sounding more awake but still confused. I felt bad laying all this on him without any warning.

"Just tell me you will come and bring a couple uniformed guys with you, too."

"Yeah, let me see what I can do. Just don't do anything stupid. You hear me?"

"I hear you," I promised. Of course his definition and my definition of stupid just might not be the same. I needed to save Rosalie.

I was walking to the front desk when I hung up with him. There was a guy standing behind the counter.

"Excuse me. I am a police officer and close personal friend of Rosalie Hale, um, Bella Swan." I was praying that this was going to be easy. I figured it was too early for Royce to be here or for Jessica's shift to start.

"Miss Swan. What can I do for you? I have a note about you." He smirked.

I looked at him, confused. "You have a note about me?"

He pulled a sticky tab from under the counter on his side. It simply said - _Give Bella Swan whatever she wants - Royce. _

I wanted to fucking kiss Royce King right now. Kiss his rose petaled face.

"I need a key to the Executive Suite. Please." So easy. Finally.

On the way up I went over and over the plan in my head. I didn't think there were many people involved in this outside of Mike and Tanya. I was almost certain that I was going to find Rose by herself in there. Mike wouldn't have been up there, he wouldn't have risked it if there were other people he could count on. But I couldn't be completely certain. I had turned off my phone so it wouldn't go off at the wrong time. I reached behind me and pulled out my gun. I pressed down on the loader to make sure I had a full clip. I pushed the ammo clip back up and pulled the slide back and then released it, loading a bullet in the chamber. When I got to the floor I carefully stepped off the elevator. This time the hallway was empty. I stayed close to the wall and made my way to the door. If someone was acting as a lookout, they would know I was coming. There was no way around that. There was the video monitor showing the hallway to whoever was inside. If they saw me coming, I hoped they would make their move before I got to the door.

I made it to the door and slowly slid my key into the slot on the handle. The light turned green, and very carefully, I swung the door open. Nothing. No one by the door. I cleared the front area, keeping my gun up and ears open. No sounds. I walked through suite clearing each room as I went. No one in the main living area. No one in the bathroom. No one in the kitchen. I made my way back to the bedrooms. Three bedrooms. No one in bedroom one. Bedroom two, I opened the door carefully, slowly. There in the room, wearing nothing but her bra and panties, tied to a chair, blindfolded, with a gag in her mouth was the one person I had wanted to see more than anyone, ever. Her head was sagging down like maybe she was asleep or unconscious. I cleared the room and the attached bathroom. There was no one in here except for Rose. I could feel my fucking heart pounding out of my chest. I closed the door, and it clicked ever so softly as the door closed. Rosalie's head snapped up, and I could see her beginning to panic.

"Rose, it's me," I whispered.

She wailed and started fighting against her restraints.

"Shh!" I hadn't cleared the last bedroom. I didn't know for sure if we were alone. I made my way over to her and pulled off the blindfold and untied the gag.

"Bella!" she cried in a raspy and anguished voice.

"Shhh, do you know if anyone is here? In the room over there?" I nodded in the direction of the room I hadn't checked.

"No. Somebody was here a long time ago but they came and went. Nobody's been here with me much, I don't think." She began to sob. "Thank you. Thank you for finding me."

I shoved my gun back in my waistband. I was trying to loosen the ties that bound her to the chair but she was secured too tightly.

"I have to go find something to cut these ties, I'll be right back," I whispered.

"Please, please don't leave me!" she cried. She was so visibly shaken.

I held her face in my hands. "I got to get you out of here, sweetheart. I can't loosen these by myself. I need to cut you out. I will be right back. I promise. I promise, I will not leave you here." I hugged her not knowing what else to do. I was so fucking happy to see her.

I walked out of the room and cleared the third and final bedroom. There was no one here but me and Rose. I ran to the kitchen and found kitchen scissors in a drawer. I ran back to the bedroom where Rosalie was waiting for me. She was breathing so hard.

I started cutting away at the ties.

"We have been so fucking worried about you! I can't believe the mighty Rosalie Hale couldn't claw her way out of these stupid ties." I tried to be funny because I could see us both crying our eyes out any minute.

"Well, Detective, if it hadn't taken you so fucking long to find me, I'd be in better shape. I mean, I couldn't break a nail before my fucking wedding," she joked back. I laughed. I have never been so happy and so scared at the same time. My adrenaline was flowing like a bitch.

I cut the last part holding her hands together. She swung them in front of her and rubbed her wrists. I cut away the ones tying her body to the chair and then the ones on her legs.

I jumped up and grabbed her in my arms. She was a little wobbly when she stood up. We clung to each other for dear life. I could feel the tears falling out of my eyes. I had my face pressed into her shoulder and in her hair.

She was sobbing again. We held each other for a good minute or two. I pulled away and looked her over. She was fine. Not a scratch that I could see. She had some marks on her skin from fighting the restraints but nothing that would leave permanent scars.

"You're all right. Thank god you're all right! Did he hurt you, did he touch you, or you know?" I needed to know if he had violated her in any way. I couldn't imagine, but she was here in her underwear.

"I'm fine. Nobody touched me really. All I remember is walking into my suite and someone grabbing me. I woke up and was tied to that chair. They kept me blindfolded the whole time. Somebody would come in and try to get me to drink water. They cut my hair. They cut a piece of hair in the back. Where's Em?" she asked, her face all wet.

"We'll call him okay, but let's get out of here." I grabbed her hand and led her out of the bedroom. We needed to get her some clothes. I pulled out the key to her suite.

"Here. Go across the hall and get some clothes on. I need you to hold off on calling Emmett until we get downstairs. I'll explain on our way down, but _do not_ call him until I'm with you." I handed her the key. She nodded.

"What are you going to do?" she asked, squeezing my hand tighter.

"I'm going to look around here a minute and call Eric. He's on his way over here, and I need him to know I found you."

She hesitantly let go of me, and I walked her to the door. I watched her go to her suite. She turned and smiled at me before walking in and closing the door. I walked back in the other room and looked around while I pulled out my cell and turned it back on. There was nothing in any of the rooms that seemed out of place. Obviously, Mike had just been holding her in the one bedroom. He didn't stay here. Maybe checked on her. In the room where she was tied up, I saw a towel on the floor and the glass of water with a straw on the nightstand. At least he had offered her some water. _Holy shit._ Reality was setting in. He had held her in here for more than a day. Left her sitting there in her underwear tied up. Fucking asshole. This was his friend. Rosalie was his friend. Emmett was his fucking best friend. _Emmett asked him to be his best man and he does this?_ I couldn't wrap my head around it.

I called Eric.

"I got her. I found her; she's safe, but I need you to come to my room, 1805. We need to figure out how to proceed. Mike is on the 17th floor with Emmett. I don't want to put Emmett in danger by alerting Mike to soon."

"I'll be there in two minutes," he responded.

I turned to go out in the hall and that was when I heard the click of the door. I didn't think anything of it until I realized I hadn't given Rosalie the key to this suite. She walked in with a smile on her face wearing a t-shirt and jeans, with her hair up in a messy ponytail. But I wasn't paying that much attention to her, I was more interested in who was walking in behind her.

Rosalie was oblivious to the danger his appearance presented. "Mike was looking for you, Bella. Imagine his surprise when I walked into the hallway!"

I pulled my gun out from my back again and pointed it at him best I could, but he was wisely using Rosalie as a shield. He flashed me his gun as well, the one he had pointed right at her back.

"Bella, what the hell are you doing?" she screamed in surprise. Mike was quick to put his hand on her shoulder to hold her in place.

"Don't move, Rosalie. Just stay right where you are." His eyes never left mine as he spoke to her.

Rosalie was confused. She turned towards him. "What the hell?" His hand moved to her neck.

He nearly growled, "I said, don't move."

Rose looked down at his hand and saw the gun. "What the -?"

"It's over, Mike. The police are on their way. You're done. Don't make this worse for yourself," I said, holding my weapon steadily in the direction of his face.

"Mike, you aren't going to hurt me, what the hell is going on!" Rosalie took a step forward towards me and he grabbed her again. He cocked the trigger on his gun.

"I wouldn't be so sure of yourself there, Rosie. You obviously didn't think I would fucking knock you out and tie you to a chair either, but desperate men do desperate things."

The realization of what was happening hit Rosalie like a ton of bricks.

"You?" she breathed.

"Stay still, Rose. Do what he says. He isn't kidding." I said as I took a step to the side, but he moved as well, always keeping her between me and him.

"I don't believe that you called the police yet, Bells. You didn't even tell your idiot boyfriend what you were doing or where you were going or who was behind this whole thing. Emmett and him are probably sitting in your room right now, clueless as to how to save their poor little damsels in distress."

"You're wrong, Mike. I called Eric. I called Eric before I even came up here, and he is on his way. He knows everything. I just got off the phone with him. He'll be here any second." Well, he'd be waiting in my fucking room on the eighteenth floor with Edward and Emmett, clueless as to how find us. I wasn't going to let him know that.

Just then my phone rang, Edward's cell.

"Don't even think about answering that," he seethed. "I think you're lying. I don't think you told anyone because you are a one-woman show, Isabella. You don't ever ask for help. You like to do everything by yourself. So fucking independent. To a fault. That's why we never would have worked."

I was pissed, mostly because, in some respects, he was right. I had been independent to a fault. I didn't trust people and didn't let people help me, usually. But thankfully, I hadn't let my independent nature totally fuck this up.

"Yeah, the fact that you're a motherfucking psychopath, that couldn't have anything to do with it. It must be all me." My disgust was evident.

"I'm not a psychopath. I wasn't going to hurt anyone. But you, you couldn't just let things be. All you had to do was let them deliver the necklace, and Rose would have magically appeared back in her suite across the hall. That's it. It would have been so easy. But you had to keep digging. You just don't get it. You don't understand what I am up against here! You had to go to Kings and Queens like you have some sort of fucking death wish!"

"This is over, Mike. I'm telling you things will be better for you if you turn yourself in peacefully. If you never really intended to do harm like you say, things won't be as bad. You know. You know if you cooperate, things will be better for you." I tried to reason with him. He had to see that there was no way out. He was going to have to turn himself in or kill me and Rosalie. I didn't believe he had it in him to kill us. Mike, who used to call me Sweetie Bell. Mike, who used to love to cuddle like a girl after sex. Mike, who took me to his parents' house for the holidays one year where I learned his older sisters used to dress him up like a girl and called him Michaela. He was not going to be able to kill me in cold blood. I couldn't believe that.

He looked pale and like he might be sick. He was beginning to crack under the pressure of all this. His eyes were focused right on mine. "If the police are coming up here then you might as well shoot me, Bells, because I'm a dead man either way."

**A/N: I added some info about this story to my profile. Links to the places and things that inspired things in the story. Check it out if you're interested. **

**Thanks for reading and following along. We still don't know why he did it but all will be revealed soon...**


	38. Chapter 37 Fault

EPOV

This was all my fault. This was all my fucking fault. I had done what my dad certainly would have expected. I didn't listen, and now Bella and Rosalie were going to pay the price for my stupidity. Emmett was ready to kill someone, and I almost wanted it to be me. I could not imagine living if this ended with Bella being killed. I wouldn't be able to do it.

"What did she say to you, exactly, Edward? Think, damn it!" Emmett was raging.

I tried to remember her exact words, but she had really told me nothing. Nothing except stay put until she called me and don't call Emmett. Of course now I know why she didn't want me to call Emmett because that would alert Mike. But I didn't listen. I ruined everything.

"She said stay in the room. She said we could call you after she checked things out. She needed to check something first."

"Check what? Check where? Please, Edward. Think! She must have said something! Did it sound like she was going to leave the hotel?"

I couldn't remember. All I could think about at the time was she was taking her gun. She was going to check something out. Then it hit me.

"She was going to check out something upstairs! That's what she said. She must have gone upstairs to the penthouse."

Emmett almost threw me into the wall as he moved past me to get out the door. He was headed for the elevators this time.

"I don't have an elevator key, do you?" I asked as I tried to follow behind him.

"Fuck!" he screamed. This was taking too much time. We weren't going to make it.

The elevator appeared, and we got in. I tried Bella's cell phone again, but it went to voicemail.

I decided to leave a message. "Bella, baby, it's me. Mike knows you know. I'm sorry, but I called Emmett. I didn't know. I didn't know it was Mike. But he knows you know, and he probably is going to Rosalie. You need to call us. We need to call the police, now. I'm sorry. I am so sorry."

Emmett was so impatient. It was so unusual to see him so completely undone. I just hoped she was still up there and not where Mike and Rosalie were. Then I was overwhelmed with guilt again because if we got to Bella and Mike got to Rosalie, then what? We would lose Rose. Emmett will never forgive me. This was all my fault.

We made it to the lobby, and Emmett went straight to the front desk. There was a guy I hadn't seen before behind the counter.

"I'm Emmett Cullen. Rosalie Hale's fiancé. I need an elevator key to get up to the Presidential Suite. Now. I don't care if you have to call Royce King or Howard fucking Hale but I need that key."

The guy took one look at Emmett and decided that it was best to do what he asked.

"Second time tonight someone was throwing around Miss Hale's name. What is she doing up there? Did she have some sort of Bachelorette party or something?" He smiled, trying to lighten the mood. Emmett's mood could not be lightened.

"Who else used her name?" Emmett asked, squeezing his hands into fists.

"Miss Swan, do you know her?" the guy answered and asked as he reached into a drawer and pulled out a key.

_Thank you Jesus!_ We were headed to the right place. Emmett nearly took off the guys hand snatching the key. But why did Bella need to throw Rosalie's name around? Did she need a key? She had a key to the elevator and to Rose's room. Emmett was already half way to the elevators when that thought hit me. I ran back to the front desk.

"What did she need? Bella, what did Bella Swan ask you for?"

He looked at me curiously. My brother's lack of social skills earlier did not warm this gentleman to us very much.

He frowned and decided to answer me. "A key to the Executive Suite."

"The Executive Suite? Where the hell is that?"

"Across the hall from the Presidential Suite," he said, looking at me like I was some sort of idiot. Across the hall. That's where they were. Mike was headed up there, they were all up there already.

"Em!" I yelled as I dashed for the elevators. Emmett was already on one, and the doors were closing. "Em! Stop!" I screamed as the doors closed. _Fuck!_ He left me down here. I banged my fists on the closed doors. I couldn't get up there without my own key. I ran back to the front desk.

"You don't happen to have another elevator key for Rosalie's almost brother-in-law, would you?"

He opened the drawer and then looked back at me. "I'm sorry, all four keys are currently being used."

I could feel my heart pounding inside my chest. The blood coursing through my veins. I wasn't going to get to her. I was going to be able to save her. My brother was also going upstairs unaware that Mike was up there. There was the potential I could lose everyone. I could be responsible for killing everyone. I raked my hands through my hair as the enormity of that pressed down on my shoulders.

"I could give you the stairway key, though. I mean, you'd have to get off on the 39th floor and then walk up the flight of stairs to the 40th. There are two doors and these are the keys," my savior behind the desk said, dangling two keys on a key ring in front of me. I looked at his name tag - Paul.

"Paul, you are my hero," I said, snatching the keys from his hand and running to catch the next elevator up.

As the doors closed, I saw two uniformed police officers enter the hotel with another man. I almost thought to stop the doors from closing but there wasn't time to tell them this crazy story. I needed to get upstairs. It was the longest elevator ride I have ever endured. It was so early in the morning that there weren't even that many people up and about. My elevator only stopped once to let someone off who got on with me in the lobby. Yet, even without the stops, it seemed like it was in slow motion. I made it to the 39th floor and raced to the stairwell. I opened the door and ran up to the first landing. There was a door there that had a big sign on it,_ Private Penthouse Suites. Key Required._

Oh, I had a key, bitch. I fumbled with them and shoved one into the lock with no luck. I tried to grab the other key on the ring and dropped them both on the ground. My fingers were not working. Now I didn't know which one I had tried already. I shoved one in the lock and again got it wrong.

"Fuck!" I took a deep breath and closed my eyes for a second. Then I switched keys and put it in the lock. It turned, and I was on my way again.

I felt like I was running for my life, but I was actually running for someone much more important than myself. I took the steps two at a time. I made it to the top and there was a small window in the door. I looked out into the hallway which was empty. I fumbled with the keys again. I had stupidly not held on to them so I knew which damn key to use. I took one and put it in the lock, no dice. I had the worst fucking luck ever known to man. I looked out into the hall again. I was breathing heavy from running up the stairs. I could feel the beads of sweat forming on my forehead. Then I saw Emmett stepping out of the Presidential Suite. He looked so frustrated. He hadn't found them in there because they weren't in there. I banged on the door, and he looked up at me. I shoved the key into the lock and turned the knob as I unlocked it. I ran into the hall.

"Em, they're -"

_Pop! Pop! Pop!_

Gunshots. I knew that was what I was hearing.

Then nothing. I heard nothing. No screaming, no footsteps running away from the sounds I heard moments before, nothing.

I felt nothing and everything all at the same time. Numbness and pain at once. Pain I couldn't even imagine. She was the most important thing in my life, the only thing that mattered. She was dead, and it was all my fault.

How would I ever live without her and how would I ever be able to live with myself?

My knees buckled under me, and I found myself on the floor. I had done this. Emmett looked at me as his face blanched. He turned and headed towards the suite where the sounds came from.


	39. Chapter 38 The Truth

BPOV

"You don't have to be a deadman, Mike. This doesn't have to end with anyone getting hurt," I pleaded. Mike was desperate. He saw this only ending one way and that way left the potential for something to happen to Rosalie or to me as well.

"You don't understand, Bella. You don't know." He was visibly upset. Mike rubbed his neck, taking his hand off Rosalie's. I saw Rosalie considering her options now that he wasn't touching her.

"Explain to me what is going on here, man. You and me, we were more than friends. We used to talk. We used to really care about one another, didn't we?" I tried to play up our emotional connection. He needed to see us as important people in his life.

Mike shook his head, he was conflicted about this whole thing. I knew he didn't really want to hurt us.

"You don't understand, Bella. They are going to kill me. I. Am. Dead!" His eyes were wild. He really was on the edge. I had to keep him from falling over with Rosalie in his grasp.

"Who's going to kill you?"

"Emmett is going to kill him," Rosalie spat.

"Rosalie, please," I said as a authoritatively as I could.

"Is that who you're worried about? Emmett's not going to kill you. Send you to jail but not kill you." I needed him to relax not freak out.

"Ha! I'm not worried about fucking Emmett! Emmett is nothing," he said, shaking his head. Rosalie was red in the face, the initial shock of all this had worn off. She was pissed.

She turned her head slightly towards him. "You should be worried because when he gets his hands on you, you'll wish for a bullet in the head."

I tried to get Rosalie's attention, but she wouldn't look at me. "Rosalie." I shook my head when our eyes finally met.

"Mr. Perfect, right? Perfect boyfriend, perfect son, perfect brother, perfect Assistant D.A., and some day he'll be the perfect D.A. I'm sure," Mike said with obvious disgust.

"Emmett has always been there for you, Mike. He's always had your back." His lack of respect for the friend who would have done anything for him was almost as bad as all the other crimes he had committed here. "If it's not Emmett, who's going to kill you?" I needed to keep him talking.

Mike laughed maniacally, it caused a shiver up my spine. "The Volutri brothers, Bella. I owe the Volturi brothers _a lot_ of money. And on top of that they won't let me have Tanya. I can't have her until I pay my debt and hers."

I gulped. They were still involved. Mike had gotten himself into something bad, something so bad.

"What kind of debt?" I managed to ask, even though my mouth had gone dry and my stomach was churning.

"Well, Bells." He laughed humorlessly. "Not all of us are on the fast track to D.A. like Emmett. I mean, with him as my competition there's no way in hell that job is ever going to be mine. I don't have a daddy who gives me whatever I ask for either." He pulled hard on Rose's ponytail, yanking her head back. "So, I got involved in a few high stakes poker games down in the basement of Kings and Queens. And I won a little, okay, I won a lot." A prideful smile crossed his face. "I won enough to buy some time with the most beautiful woman in the world."

"Tanya," I groaned. I realized where this was going.

"Yes, Tanya. Don't say her name like that. She is _everything_ to me. Everything. I was tying to save her, Bells. I was trying to get her out of this life. I wanted to give her the world and she wants me, too. She wants to be with me. Not like you, who thought you were better off with some fucking guy with muscles, who beat the shit out of you. Tanya has one of those, too, you know. But she realized that I was the one who would take care of her. I was the one she should be with. You were too stupid to see that." For a moment he pointed and shook the gun at me instead of holding it against Rosalie's back. I saw Rosalie's mind whirling. She was going to try something and soon. What I wouldn't give to be able to read her mind right now.

"So if you won a lot, why do you owe them money?"

"I won at first. Then I started to _not_ win. Pretty soon, I was losing all the time. But I knew, I knew that if I just kept playing I could make it up. I offered them a few deals. In my position in the D.A.'s office, I could make this and that disappear. I could convince a few people they saw something different than they really saw. It was so easy." He rammed the gun back into Rosalie's side. "Then Emmett had to step in. Emmett fucking Cullen to the rescue! He had to start personally overseeing any case that had to do with the Volturi. He started to make things more difficult, not impossible, but difficult."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Mike was so far over his fucking head it was unbelievable. Rosalie was looking at me. We probably shared the same shocked expression.

"They let me borrow money, they let me borrow a lot of money. But I couldn't fucking win! I started to think they were fucking with me. Fixing games. I went to Vegas with Emmett and won a little. I started gaining some confidence back. But as soon as I came back to Kings and Queens, I had a meeting with Aro. Turns out he would be willing to forgive me all the money if I was able to procure him a certain blue diamond. He didn't care what I did to get it, he just wanted it. If I was able to give him that, I could forget what I owed him and he would release Tanya from her contract with them. It was going to be so easy. So fucking easy." He was laughing again.

"So you figured a couple days before your best friend's wedding you'd just hold his fiancée for ransom?" I couldn't see how this was the best solution to his problem.

"Well, I had wanted to do it before _you_ got here, but we ran into trouble here with some bitch that was training Tanya. She watched her like a fucking hawk for like two weeks. Questioned everything she did."

I could kiss Jessica right now. Anyone who made this more difficult for him was all good in my book.

"So things had to get pushed until after you got here. The Hales were so damn predictable. One mention of cutting Rosie's pretty little face, and they would have given me anything." He had his face close to hers and rubbed his fingers along her cheek. "You" - he looked back at me - "were the wild card in the whole thing, and you fucked things up for me royally." He looked at me with such hate in his eyes. I didn't even recognize this man anymore.

"I wish I could say I was sorry, Mike. But this is wrong. Everything you have done is wrong. You need to put the gun down, and we need to be done with this. You need to start making things right."

"If I go to jail, do you know how long I'll last? Shit, Bella! I won't even make it to trial. I will have a target on my back the second I'm arrested. I'll be killed by some other schmuck that owes Aro. I'm done for. All I can do now is thank you for not telling your dumbass, pretty boy boyfriend what was really going on."

"Why do you keep talking about a boyfriend?" Rosalie asked, interrupting his confession.

I realized that Rose had no idea that I was with Edward. This really wasn't the time to discuss my love life.

"Rose, seriously," I sighed and tried to give her a look that meant _drop it_.

"Oh, Rosie doesn't know, does she? She doesn't know that you two could have been sisters some day. I really didn't want to hurt anyone, but you two have left me no choice. It wouldn't seem so impossible that Aro would kill Rose, not after you fucking interfered the way you did. So, when you both end up dead, it will be no surprise. It will be sad but no surprise. I should have no problem convincing Emmett this was all your fault after he delivers the necklace and you and Rosalie are found up here."

He was going to kill us. He was going to try to kill us, at least. I could feel the color drain from my face.

"You aren't a killer, Mike. You aren't. You don't want to do this. You will never be able to live with yourself. You think you can just run away with Tanya, and everything will be fine? You think Aro's really going to let you go?" I was desperate to stop him. He was planning on killing us. If he thought I was going to go down without a fight, he was dead wrong.

"I love her, Bella. I will do anything for Tanya. Anything."

I remembered the words Edward had said to me yesterday when we were looking at the video tapes. "_Guys will do anything to get the girl, Bella. Almost anything, for the right girl." _He was right. He had been right from the very beginning, we were just wrong about who the guy and girl were. _Edward. _Edward didn't do what I asked him. He called Emmett, who must have told Mike. I had left with so little explanation. I'm sure he was totally confused and scared. He was shaking when he saw me take my gun. I should have told him. I should have told him why we couldn't call Emmett. It was my fault, but if something happened here, he was never going to forgive himself. He was going to blame himself because that was what he did. _Fuck._

Mike was right I was so damn independent. I was a terrible partner. Eric could attest to that. Peter, too. They dealt with me, but I knew I pissed them off sometimes. I made a silent promise to myself to not be like that anymore. If I got out of this situation in one piece, I promised to not keep secrets from Edward anymore, even if I thought I was doing it to protect him. He was a big boy, he could handle the truth and maybe even help me. He could be the best partner I ever had. My life partner.

"She called the fucking cops, Mike. Are you not understanding that Emmett is not going to give you the fucking necklace?" Rosalie was done being out of control. She wanted to take this situation over and be done with it.

"I don't think she did." Mike looked at me.

"I did. I called Eric. Do you want to see my phone? I called Eric twice this morning. Why would I call Eric this morning other than to tell him about this?" I held my phone up and waved it around.

"Here, I'll slide it over," Rose said, motioning with her hands.

"Fine, you can see for yourself. I am not lying when I say this is over for you. You do not want to add murder to the list of things they are going to put you away for." I bent down, keeping my gun pointed at him and put my phone on the floor. I slid it across the wood floor towards Rosalie. It hit her right on the foot.

Rosalie was making a face at me. Trying to tell me something without words. I didn't know what and didn't like the idea that she was going to try something. Mike and I were the ones with the guns. She did not need to do anything that was going to put her anymore danger than she already was in.

"I'll pick it up for you, Michael." She looked down at her hands. I saw her fingers counting. One, two, three. She bent down, and then before I could react, she elbowed him hard in the groin. She ran away from him as he lifted his gun to fire at her. I fired first, hitting him in the arm. He was wounded but not fatally. He turned his gun on me and fired at me, I shot one more time before I could feel the heat burning in my chest and my legs gave out.

**A/N: There you have it, Mike Newton mastermind criminal or poor manipulated idiot. Let me know what you think...**


	40. Chapter 39 Scared to Death

**A/N: I just want to say thanks to all the people following the stories and to all of you who have favorited it - I really appreciate all the great feedback. Keep it coming!**

EPOV

Emmett was slamming his shoulder into the door trying to knock it down. Before he broke in, it opened.

"Baby!" Her voice was unmistakable. Rosalie had opened the door. Rosalie was alive. She jumped into Emmett's arms and wrapped her legs around his waist, her arms around his neck.

She dropped her legs, but Emmett wasn't going to let her go. He didn't ever want to let her go.

"Oh, god, Rose! I love you so much. Please tell me you're okay." He was crying into her shoulder and pressing every inch of her to his body.

"Baby, I love you. I'm fine, but we have to help Bella."

I felt my heart stop. I couldn't breathe. _ We have to help Bella._ That's what she said. Bella needed help. She was hurt. I knew it. Suddenly, there was this mind-blowing, heart wrenching noise ringing in my ears. It wasn't until Emmett put his arm around me that I realized it was coming from me.

Emmett helped me to my feet, and I don't know what he was saying because all I could hear was my own heartbreak. We walked down the hall to the room. Rosalie was pressing a towel on Bella's chest. My beautiful girl was lying on the floor turning the white towel red with her blood. I stopped wailing. I stopped breathing. I wanted to stop living.

Emmett was on the phone calling 911. Then he called someone and asked them to meet him in the on the 39th floor immediately.

He turned to Rosalie. "I'm going to meet my dad and bring him up here to help her. Then I'll go down to bring up the EMT's. Keep pressure on it. What about him?" I saw his eyes move to the left of where I stood. I looked down. On the ground was a bleeding Mike Newton. He had been shot once in the arm and once in the center of the chest. His eyes were open, but he wasn't moving, he looked dead. There was a lot of blood, even more than was coming out of Bella. If there was a God, Newton better be dead and on his way to Hell.

"I don't know about Edward, but I'm not taking my hands off Bella. Edward, can you come help me keep pressure on this? I think she needs our help more than him." Rosalie didn't have to ask me twice. I willed my legs to move and walked over to them. I knelt down next to Bella and placed my hand on the towel next to Rosalie's. With my other hand I scooped up Bella's. Her eyes were fluttering. _Holy shit, she was still conscious. _

"Bella. Bella, you hang on, okay? You hang on for me. I need you." I couldn't imagine never looking into those brown eyes again. I couldn't imagine never wrapping my arms around her little waist or smelling that sweet scent that comes off her body naturally, no fancy perfumes or soaps necessary. "Who else am I going to take pictures of, huh? I only want pictures of you, Bella." I would never take another picture if she died. There would be nothing worth shooting.

"She needs to be okay because you two have a lot of explaining to do. I need to understand how you wooed my best friend while I was being held against my will. I should kick your asses for hooking up while I was tied to a fucking chair." Rosalie expression was unreadable.

Bella's eyes opened, and I could see her struggling to breathe. She actually gave me a smile. Not a big one but definitely a smile. Then I felt her squeeze my hand.

"She's kidding," Bella forced out. I wanted to feel relieved, but Rosalie was the least of my worries.

It wasn't long before my father walked in the room and took Rosalie's spot.

"How many times was she shot?" he asked.

"Just once," Rosalie answered. Her hands were covered in blood. She had blood on her shirt and jeans. Bella's blood. I was going to be sick.

"Let's roll her over so I can see if it went all the way through, okay?" He looked at me, and I nodded. My lungs were barely functioning, I couldn't speak.

My father rolled her towards me. The movement caused her to moan loudly.

"Stop! You're hurting her!" I yelled. My body tensed and my eyes darted to his. I didn't want anyone to hurt her anymore.

"I have to see if the bullet exited her body, Edward. It looks like it did. There is an exit wound on her back. That's good. We don't have to worry about a bullet being lodged inside." He gently rolled her back on her back. "Rosalie, can you get us another towel, something we can place underneath her? I also need something plastic. A plastic bag, something to cover the wound to keep the air from getting sucked into it. We don't want her lung to collapse."

Rosalie ran to the bathroom and grabbed another towel, she also came out with a bag that was lining the wastebasket. My father looked at me like I was someone he didn't recognize.

"What?" I asked, my voice shaking.

"Nothing," he replied, still looking at me like I had an extra head or something. He rolled her again and set the towel under her. He ripped open her t-shirt and placed the bag over the oozing hole in her upper chest. Then he placed the bloody towel back on top. He glanced up at me, and I figured he was trying to determine how I was to blame.

"You want to know if this was my fault?" I shouted. I knew what he was thinking. I knew he knew I did this to her. I didn't pull the trigger, but I might as well have.

"No." He shook his head. "Edward, I wasn't thinking that." He seemed surprised by my outburst. "It's, I don't know. Son, it's going to be all right. Someone will be here soon to help her."

Tears were dripping off my chin and onto Bella. Everything inside me was burning. I hated myself. I hated myself so much that it made my father's dislike for me seem like affection.

"It was my fault. It was all my fault. I'm so sorry Bella." I held her hand up to my mouth and kissed it. Her hand was so cold and my own heart was feeling sluggish.

She tried to squeeze my hand again. She was so weak, though. I brushed her hair from her face as she tried to focus her eyes on me.

"Don't," she choked out.

I put her hand down. She didn't want me to touch her. She probably didn't want me to ever touch her again. This was my fault.

Her eyes closed and then reopened.

"I love you," she breathed. Her hand reached out for me.

I looked at her. Her eyes closed again and didn't reopen. She loved me? Why would she say that? Didn't she get it? Maybe she got it and still loved me. I didn't deserve her, but she was loving me in spite of my flaws. Even though I was the reason she was dying right now. I grabbed her hand and held it until the paramedics arrived.

I paced the waiting area in the hospital like a caged animal. My mother, my father, and Eric sat in the uncomfortable plastic chairs. My mother was wringing her hands, while my father rubbed her shoulder with the hand that was wrapped around her. Emmett and Rosalie were standing near them in a never-ending embrace. They were whispering back and forth and occasionally spoke to my parents. Rosalie had asked me a million and one questions about me and Bella. She was surprisingly supportive after all was said and done.

My mother tried to get me to sit, but I couldn't. I was running my hand through my hair like a madman. I was sure that I might start pulling it out soon if someone didn't come and tell me what was happening. I wanted a cigarette but that would require me to exit the building, which wasn't going to happen.

Alice and Jasper arrived. Alice somehow wrapped herself around Rosalie even though my brother never took his hands off her. They talked about Renee being on her way. Rosalie tried to fill Alice in on what happened. For some reason no one pointed out that it was my doing that Mike got to them before they could escape safely. Everyone kept leaving that part out, but it was the truth. She wouldn't be in here if it weren't for me. She would have saved the day, and Newton would be headed to jail. Although I didn't exactly feel bad that he had come to the hospital in a body bag.

Finally a nurse came in. "Swan family?"

"Yes," I answered, spinning around to face her. I was Isabella Swan's family.

"How is she? Is she okay?" She didn't answer fast enough. "Is she okay?" My voice rose with each word, and I had a hard time controlling my emotions. I was a disaster. I needed her to be okay. I needed it more than I have ever needed anything. My parents were on their feet and Em and Rose moved closer, still connected.

"She's out of surgery. She lost a lot of blood. They had to give her a couple liters. Her blood pressure is better. She's in recovery and should be in a room real soon. The doctor will be out in a few minutes to give you more information."

I had never been so happy in my entire life. The room started to spin and before I knew it I was on my back staring up at five very concerned faces.

"Jesus, Edward! Are you all right?" Emmett asked, taking my hand in his.

"Give him some air," my father demanded. Emmett helped me up and led me over to a chair.

My father was staring at me again with that look again. It seemed like he was looking at something he had never seen before.

"What? Nobody ever fainted from hearing they won the fucking lottery before? I'm fine. I just want to see Bella." I looked away from my father's uncomfortable glare. I put my head in my hands. She was going to be all right. I felt my cold, dead heart start beating once again.


	41. Chapter 40 Answered Prayers

**A/N: Some final answers to some questions. I feel sad that this is coming to an end. Only a couple chapters left...**

BPOV

My angel was crying. He was in such despair, and I couldn't bear it much longer. He was apologizing, he felt guilty. He didn't need to feel guilty. He was my angel. _Edward._ My mind was clouded, everything was so fuzzy. I could make out that Rosalie was giving him a hard time, and he didn't look like he could take much more. I didn't know if I could take much more. It hurt to breathe. I wanted to stop breathing so it wouldn't hurt, but Edward wanted me to hold on. I was trying, but it was becoming more difficult by the second to keep my eyes open. Edward let go of my hand when I tried to get him to stop berating himself. The look in his eyes was so pained, like I had stung him.

"I love you," I breathed. I wanted to yell it so he wouldn't forget. I wasn't capable of yelling, though. I hoped I said it loud enough that he could hear. I wanted him to know that he didn't have to feel guilty. This was my fault. I had put myself in this stupid situation. Now he was here, he found me even though I had told him so little. He knew he should find me and he did. I felt his hand wrap around mine again before everything went black.

My next conscious thought was of my dad. My dad would be the one to take me to the other side if that was where I was headed. He would be happy and not happy to see me, I was sure. I imagined the smile that would brighten his face and then the sadness that would show in his eyes. He would not want me to leave this world so young. He would be mad at me for leaving my mother all alone. I had been mad at him for doing the same thing a couple years ago. I was angry at him for a long time but more than anything I missed him. The thought of seeing him again made me feel excited. My dad was my hero. He was everything I wanted to be. He loved me like no one else ever had. When he died, I forgot who I was. I forgot that I was capable of being loved. I turned to Jake, who didn't know how to love. My dad would have really been angry about that lapse in my judgement. Then I met Edward, who reminded me. He was in love with me. Really and truly in love with me. My dad would be happy about that.

I could see Edward in my mind. His smile and his crazy hair. His perfect jaw and his green, loving eyes. As much as I wanted to see my dad again, I knew that I wanted to see Edward more. So I fought against the darkness and sought the world of the living once again. Both Edward and my dad would be happy.

I tried to open my eyes, but it wasn't as easy as I thought it should be. The lights in the room hurt after being in the dark so long. I listened to the noises of the room. Something was beeping and something else was hissing softly. I could hear someone shifting in a chair near me. It had to be Edward. I made myself wake up, forced my eyes to open.

Sitting in the hospital room with me was no other than Dr. Carlisle Cullen. Not who I was expecting, _at all_.

"Bella. How wonderful." He grinned, and I couldn't help but think he actually had a lovely smile. It reminded me of Edward's.

"Edward," I croaked, my voice sounded so strange.

Dr. Cullen pulled his seat closer. He looked at the machine next to me. It was some monitor keeping track of my vitals, maybe. He turned his focus back to me.

"Your mother and Esme finally got the poor boy to go eat something. He has been sitting here all day long. He's going to be so upset that this is when you chose to wake up. Of course, that won't last long because he'll be so overjoyed to see you awake."

My whole body felt so weak. My right shoulder was heavily bandaged, and it was almost impossible to move that arm. I lifted my left arm with no problem and pushed some hair out of my face.

"How are you feeling? They have you on some pretty heavy painkillers, so don't be surprised if you feel a little off. Luckily, the bullet went straight through, so there wasn't a lot of internal damage. Your shoulder and arm will need some rehab after you've healed. You were shot in the upper right side of your chest. The bullet ripped through some muscle and nipped the top of your lung, but you were really lucky. Besides a scar, you should be just fine. If you like, I can help with the scar." He smiled again. It was very disarming. I felt like I was dreaming. I didn't think Edward's father was this nice. I was confused.

"Can I have some water?" I asked. My throat was dry and my mouth felt disgusting. He grabbed a cup and filled it with some water that was sitting on a table next to the bed. He helped put the straw in my mouth. The water felt so good, clean and refreshing.

Dr. Cullen looked at me like I was an alien or something. I couldn't understand what was wrong.

"We don't have much time before they come back, and I have to ask you something." His eyes went to the door and then back to me. "What are you, Bella Swan?"

What was I? What the hell did that mean? Was I an alien? Was this a dream? I blinked a couple times and bit my lip.

"What?" I asked, finding my voice again.

"I'm sorry. That came out wrong. I am not myself today, but it seems to be the story of the day. No one is as they seem." He looked at the door again then back at me. "Can I tell you something about Edward?"

I closed my eyes. I didn't want to hear him tell me bad things about Edward. I didn't need to hear that. What an asshole. I knew he wasn't as nice as he was acting at first.

"If you want to bash Edward, you're going to have to do that in front of someone else. I am not interested in your horrible opinions." I was happy to hear myself sounding stronger.

"No, not like that. I'm sorry that's your opinion of me. But I completely deserve it, I know. Let me try to explain. I feel like I need to explain my behavior, not excuse but explain."

"Go ahead," I offered. I couldn't help but be intrigued.

"My son and I do not see eye to eye on many things, really I can't think of much except for maybe the way we both feel about his mother. She is the most wonderful woman in the world - that would be the only thing we agree on. I have always been at a loss when it comes to Edward. Since the day he was born, I have felt unequipped to care for him the way he needs to be cared for." He looked down at the floor and then back up at me.

"You probably don't know this but Edward was born eight and a half weeks premature. I could literally hold him in one hand. He was only a little over three pounds and the most fragile thing I have ever seen in my life. We spent several weeks in the NICU. Esme was beside herself with worry, but Edward was a fighter." He smiled at the memory or maybe at his word choice.

"When we brought him home, I was terrified of him. He was so small compared to Emmett. Emmett had been a big, healthy baby, over nine pounds when he was born. I was much more comfortable with him as a baby. When Edward was born, I didn't trust myself. Emmett was a two year old and he was easier for me to parent. Emmett was always a pleaser, he never wanted anything but to make me and his mother happy. He was almost too easy. Emmett was also all boy. We could roughhouse, and I never worried about him. Edward was breakable. At least that's how I saw him. I left all the caring of him to Esme, and she was the best. She is the most wonderful mother." He stopped for a second and ran his fingers through his hair like Edward does.

"Anyway, Edward grew up, and he was a child with an overabundance of energy and spirit. He was into everything and I mean _everything_. You could not turn your back on that child for a second. From the moment he could crawl, he was getting himself into things that could have literally killed him. It was very stressful, for me especially. As he got older, he just seemed to get bolder and more daring. It was something I didn't understand because again Emmett was so very different. If I told Emmett not to do something, he didn't do it. Edward was the opposite, if I said don't do something, he became all the more determined to do it. He was quite plainly, fearless. It was very frustrating. Things only got worse the older he got. If I said black, he said white. If I said up, he said down. Always challenging me. Always getting himself into situations where he could and would get hurt. I lived in this constant fear that something bad was going to happen to him and that I wouldn't be able to save him. It ate away at me. Slowly that fear turned to anger. I was angry at him for taking so many risks. His life is so precious and neither my wife nor I could get him to see that. It made Esme sick. She would and still does tie herself in knots over him and the trouble he gets himself into. I guess that also made me angry, the effect his behavior had on her. I wanted him to take himself seriously. I wanted him to want to do better for his mother and for me. I have been hard on him because I wanted him to live up to his potential instead of being so reckless."

"How can someone live up to their potential when they think their father hates them?" I interrupted. I was enthralled by what he had to say, but this was the one sticking point for me. At the same time, I could kind of see what he meant. Edward had told me about some of his past exploits. I had seen him eagerly follow me wherever I led him, even face to face with someone as dangerous as Aro Volturi. But I had thought his low self worth came from his father's lack of love not the other way around.

Dr. Cullen's answer tore me from my thoughts. "That's a very good question. One that I don't know how to answer. I mean, I don't hate him by any means. I love him, but I have always felt afraid to love him too much, because he just seemed destined to break my heart. The boy has no fear and how can you survive when nothing scares you? He never seemed to value his life, at all. Making bad decision after bad decision."

"He doesn't always see his value because he doesn't know that you value him - at all. When he sees himself through your eyes, he sees someone unworthy, unlovable. He feels like he has failed at everything, which can't be true. What did you hope to accomplish by belittling everything he ever set his heart on?" I looked at him intently. He shifted in his seat and crossed one leg over the other. He looked back at the monitors next to me again. Something was beeping.

"They need to come change your IV. I should get someone." He started to get up.

"They'll come, don't go." I wanted an answer to my question. I also wanted to know why we were having this heart to heart in the first place.

He sat back down and raked his hand through his hair.

"I can see why you would ask that. I can see how my behavior towards him has done him no good. I just couldn't take it anymore. I fought with him and fought with him, his whole life. I wanted him to be safe, and more than anything, I wanted him to _care_. But it didn't matter what I wanted or what I said to him. So, sadly, I let my anger take over our entire relationship. I have behaved badly, this I know. But I really thought he didn't care. How could I support him when doesn't care about himself or anyone else for that matter?"

"Edward cares about things, about people. He loves his mother and his brother. And as much as he hates to admit it, he loves you. You are his father. He cares about his photography. He has some friends in Chicago," I defended.

"Oh, Bella. I wish whatever he feels for all of us were enough, but I have seen him walk away without looking back. Once Edward left L.A., he travelled from city to city, never finding anyone or anything that made him want to actually make a life somewhere. Nothing we have ever said or done has made him rethink what he does. He has made his mother cry over and over, he has let his brother either take the blame or come to his rescue time and time again. And he and I, well we've been over that. Until today, I believed he couldn't care less about anything. But today, I saw something I have never seen before in my son's twenty-six years," he said as he patted my hand.

I looked at him, my face scrunched up in confusion.

"I saw _fear_ in my son's eyes. Real and absolute fear. At first, I couldn't figure it out. I'd never seen him like that before, ever. But then it hit me, what scared him was losing you. You are obviously someone that means more to him than anyone or anything ever has. So, I sit in wonder of you because _you_ are the first thing I have seen my son honestly care about. You somehow have managed to be the reason my son wants to have a life. You, Bella, are the answer to our prayers."

I felt the air leave my lungs in a rush. Just then the nurse came in with a new IV bag.

"Well, look who's awake! How are you feeling?" She was a perky little thing. She reminded me of Alice.

"I'm feeling okay, it hurts a little if I breathe too deeply," I answered.

"Bella?" Edward walked in the door and was surprised by the sound of my voice. My heart danced at the sight of him. I have never cared about someone more than I cared about him. He came over to the bed with the biggest smile on his face. He took my hand in his and kissed it gently.

"You're awake! Finally! I'm sorry I wasn't here. They made me go to dinner. It wasn't even good. I mean, who wants to eat hospital food? It's terrible, really terrible. I barely ate. Emmett's the only one who ate everything. Are you hungry? You haven't eaten all day. You've been knocked out all day, so that makes it hard to eat. I should have stayed," he was rambling, talking a mile a minute. I could only laugh at how cute he was.

"Edward, it's fine. I'm fine. I'm glad you're here now." I squeezed his hand and he relaxed.

"Isabella!"

I cringed at the sound of my mother's voice. She came bounding over and looked like she was going to leap on top of me but at the last minute changed her mind. Esme slid in behind her and stepped over by her husband. She gave me a very motherly smile.

"If you ever do anything like that to me again, I will kill you myself, do you understand?" she threatened me.

"Sorry, Mom. Won't happen again."

No one knew how to touch me. I was all bandaged up and hugging was not something I would be doing right away. She patted my leg and stood next to Edward.

"Well, Edward and I have decided you two will stay with me for a few days while you recuperate. I was afraid Rosalie and I were going to have to duke it out because she wanted the nursing duties, but Edward and I agree that we need to get you out of that hotel. No more hotels." My mom's concern was strangely heartwarming. I imagined my mom and Edward vs. Rosalie battling over who was going to fluff my pillows.

I looked up at Edward, who was smiling his crooked smile.

"You and Edward have decided, huh?" I smirked.

"Well, it is ultimately up to you, of course. But we strongly suggest that you stay with Renee for a few days. And if you'll have me, I'd like to come, too." His smile fell a little, and I remembered how sad he was the last time I saw his face.

"Wherever you go, I go. Remember?" I looked at him, wanting to jump out of this bed and wrap myself around him. I was still reeling from the thought that Dr. Cullen had left me with - that somehow I was Edward's reason for living. That was a pretty unbelievable thought.

The nurse snuck out reminding everyone that visiting hours were over at seven. I was surprised that I had lost the whole day.

"Can she handle a few more visitors then since time is almost up?" Rosalie asked from the doorway.

It was so good to see her. Rosalie was alive and well. I hadn't let her down.

"Visitors like you, absolutely." I tried to sit up a little but winced from the pain that caused.

Edward and Dr. Cullen both reached out to help me. I saw them exchange a look. Dr. Cullen sat back and let Edward help me sit up a little more.

"Bells! Looking good!" Emmett boomed. He was holding on tight to Rosalie's hand as they walked in.

"What about visitors like me?" Alice chirped. She came dancing in with Jasper behind her.

We spent the next hour talking and laughing. I couldn't help but feel lucky, which seemed like a strange emotion, considering I was lying in a hospital bed with a gunshot wound. Yet, with all these people around me, I felt at home for the first time since my dad died.

**A/N: So there you have it. I don't want to come off as too sympathetic towards Carlisle but he really isn't supposed to be the devil. Press review and let me know your thoughts! Thanks for reading! =)**


	42. Chapter 41 Home

**A/N: Second to last chapter. All that's left after this is the epilogue. Bella and Edward have some catching up to do. This is a long one!**

EPOV

I was glad when everyone finally decided to leave for the night. I wasn't sure that Bella would want me to stay, but before I could even ask her, I heard her tell Renee that she should go to the hotel because I was going to stay. My dad got up and leaned over, whispering something in Bella's ear. I saw them whispering back and forth, and he patted her hand. They were both smiling. _What the fuck was that about? _I could imagine all the things he could say to her, but none of them were good and none of them would make her smile. At least I hoped they wouldn't make her smile. I didn't know how she felt about me anymore. I had fucked up and got her shot. For all I knew, she wanted to keep me here so she could save me the embarrassment of breaking my heart in front of everyone.

My mom hugged me for like a minute. It was sweet but a little overkill. I had obviously freaked her out with the whole fainting episode. She kept looking at me all night, with that worried mother look. A couple times she even put her hand to my forehead, checking to see if I had a fever and was sick or something. I kept telling her I was fine. I was more than fine. Bella was alive. That was all that really mattered to me.

Emmett wasn't able to hug me goodbye since his arms were filled with Rosalie. I thought he was afraid that if he let her go, she would disappear again. I couldn't say I blamed him. Not knowing where Bella was for less than an hour was pretty torturous, so I imagine more than twenty-four hours of that would have been enough to make me stark raving mad. We fist pounded and Rosalie and I shared a handshake. Bella had spoken so well of her yesterday that I had high hopes Rose and I would get along well. Today, she proved to me she was cooler than I gave her credit for when I first met her. She had helped save Bella's life and actually seemed happy about me and Bella being together. She was going to be a kick ass sister-in-law.

Renee left peacefully. She was kind of a basket case when she got here. I was glad she made it here in one piece, considering I could smell the Southern Comfort when she hugged me in the waiting room. She was sobering up by the time we went to dinner and was totally coherent when we got back to the room. She loved her daughter fiercely, no one could deny that. I could see where Bella got some of her tenacity. Before she left, she hugged me almost as long as my own mother. She kept going on and on about how she and I were going to wait on Bella hand and foot once she was released. There was nothing I wanted to do more than that. I would be happy taking care of Bella the rest of my life.

Everyone was filing out and then it happened. My father walked up to me and extended his arms. I wasn't sure what was going on. Maybe he was going to smack me, maybe he was going to put me in a headlock and tell me what a fucking idiot I was for not listening to Bella. I didn't know, but I imagined the worst. Then he stepped up and wrapped his arms around me and patted me on the back. He was fucking hugging me. My father hugged me. It was like I was suddenly transported to another universe. This kind of stuff didn't happen in my world. He hugged Emmett, not me. Ever.

Slowly, making sure it wasn't a trick, I wrapped my arms around him and reciprocated the hug. _This has to be the fucking craziest day of my life._ This was the craziest day of my life, somehow topping yesterday which I thought would reign supreme for much longer. He didn't say anything but when we broke apart, it looked like he wanted to say something but then stopped himself.

I went with, "See you tomorrow." He just nodded.

After all the freakish hugging was over, I sat in the chair on Bella's left. I held her hand and was steeling myself for whatever she wanted to tell me. The nurse came in to give her more painkillers. she also helped get Bella up and made her walk around the room a little. It was good for her legs and circulation or some shit like that. There's nothing cuter than my girl in an open back hospital gown, wearing no undies. I shook my head trying to think clearly and non-pervertedly. I couldn't help wanting to touch her and hold her. It felt like years instead of hours since she was lying naked in my arms. I raked my fingers through my hair and kept reminding myself to keep those thoughts at bay. I couldn't be thinking about her naked when she broke up with me.

After the nurse and I helped her back into the bed, the two of them talked about when they would be changing Bella's bandages. While they talked, I found myself staring at Bella. Now that I really looked at her, I could see she was paler than usual, which meant she was snow white, except for her pink lips and the dark circles under her eyes. She hadn't slept much in two days and that was taking its toll on her. I knew it wouldn't be long before she would fall asleep on me. I probably could go back to the hotel, but I never wanted to be apart from her again. I imagined myself lurking around her apartment, her work, anywhere she might go once we got back to Chicago. I wondered how long it would take her to get a restraining order against me.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked once the nurse left. She was looking at me like she was trying to read my mind.

"Just how terrible it's going to be for you when I become your new stalker," I joked.

"My stalker, huh? Can you really be a stalker if I want you around?"

"I don't know. Do you want me around? I seem to cause a lot of trouble for you." I ran my fingers through my hair for the millionth time today.

"Your dad does that, have you ever noticed that?"

"What? Cause trouble for you?" I felt like there was something weird between the two of them all night. We probably needed to talk about that.

She laughed. "No, the thing with your hair. He does the same thing when he's nervous. His doesn't get all sticky uppy like yours though,"

"Sticky uppy, is that a technical term I'm not aware of?" She laughed again and it was the most wonderful thing I had heard all day. "Seriously, I'm a trouble magnet."

"Edward, I want you around. You make things better, remember?"

I dropped my eyes from hers. When she said stuff like that I had to restrain myself from reminding her the million ways I could make her life worse. If she wasn't going to break up with me, I could probably convince why she should in just a few minutes.

"I almost got you killed today. I don't think that's better."

"_You_ almost got me killed? What about me? Did I tell you Mike was behind the whole thing? Did I explain myself at all when I left you in the room this morning?" she asked, her voice rising with each question.

"You told me not to call Emmett or tell him what you were doing until you came back, but I didn't listen and it almost cost you your life, Bella." I didn't know if she totally grasped what I had done. I was staring down at my feet unable to look her in those sweet chocolate eyes.

"Edward," she said firmly. "Edward." I looked up at her. She looked kind of pissed. "Don't. Don't sit there and beat yourself up. I can't stand it. I didn't tell you what I knew and ran out of the room this morning leaving you alone and confused. I'm not surprised you called Emmett. I should have told you. I am to blame, not you."

"Bella-" I tried to talk but she stopped me.

"No, I won't listen to it. We can sit here all night arguing about who's to blame, or we can sit and enjoy our time together. I prefer the enjoying over the arguing." She smiled, and I had absolutely no desire to argue with her ever again. She was forgiving me. I guessed I was going to have to get used to that.

"You're the patient, so I guess I have to do what you say."

"It's a hospital rule. I'm pretty sure." She nodded.

"So, if all this isn't because of me, is this typically how you spend your vacations? I mean, I just want to be prepared for the future. Maybe we should take out some life insurance or something."

"Ha, ha. My life is usually not this exciting. I'm actually kind of boring, just to warn you." She reached out and put her hand on my arm.

"Well, lucky for you. I am anything but boring."

I rested my head basically on her hip and draped my arm across her body. I figured anywhere below her waist was safe. I wanted to be close to her, hold her and let her hold me. This was the best we could do in her current condition. I looked up at her as my thumb rubbed little circles over her other hip bone. She began to run her fingers through my hair as she smiled down at me. Her eyes were getting heavy, and I could see her weariness. We sat in silence for a couple minutes as she relaxed me with her finger play. I was close to falling asleep.

"So, I noticed the hug between you and your dad tonight. Interesting," she said, bringing me back to consciousness.

"Very," I replied drowsily.

"It looked like he caught you by surprise," she added. I laughed at her massive understatement. I sat up, so I didn't jostle her.

"I wasn't sure what he was doing when he came at me. I thought maybe I was gonna have to use my ninja skills on him, you know, grab him and flip him or something." I moved my arms around like I was doing slow motion karate. She laughed again, and it became my goal in life to hear that everyday.

"Your ninja skills? I'd love to see those some day."

"If you ever try to leave me again, you'll be sure to see them, let me tell you. Badass Bella has nothing on my ninja skills." I raised my hands again like I was preparing for kung fu fighting.

"Badass Bella?" She cocked her head.

"That's what I call you when you go all Angelina on me, kicking ass and taking names," I explained.

There was that beautiful laugh again. I was doing well so far.

"You are so weird." She smirked. She looked annoyed and completely hot for me at the same time.

I shook a finger at her. "Now, I see the way you're looking at me. You think I'm weird, but that oddly turns you on, doesn't it? You're strangely attracted to weirdos. I can tell. But don't go getting all worked up over there. You've already been testing my self control all night in that gown, I mean, easy access and so hot." I gave a sexy growl.

She narrowed her eyes.

"I'm serious Bella, I don't think we can do it in the bathroom here. There's not a good wall to support you on, and the nurses could walk in at any time," I said, loving every minute of being able to tease her again.

"Wow. You would think that a bullet to the chest would earn a girl one night free of sex in the bathroom jokes." She faked a hurt little look.

"Sorry. It's really my obsession now. Be glad you're a woman, I mean the things that run through my head when I walk into a bathroom. Do you have any idea how hard it is to piss when you've got a massive har-"

"Edward! For the love of all that is good in the world, please stop!" She had her hands over her ears and was closing her eyes like she was worried I was going to show her or something. It was too easy to rattle her.

"Sorry. I'll be good, I promise."

She put her hands down and opened her eyes. She eyed me carefully, trying to decide if I was going to keep my word or not, which I probably wouldn't, but I would try for a little bit.

"So, back to your dad hugging you. I think maybe he does like you." She went back to _that_ topic. Sex in the bathroom was much more interesting. Now, I wanted to cover my ears.

"I don't think my dad will ever like me, honey."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that. He had a lot to say to me about you before you came in." She bit her bottom lip and played with the plastic tubing attached to her hand.

"Oh man, I can only imagine what he said to you," I said as my hand flew through my hair again.

"It wasn't bad, I mean, I don't know what you'd call it. It was enlightening, I guess," she responded, shrugging her good shoulder.

"Okay, I give. What did you talk about?"

My imagination had to be worse than what she was going to say. I had noticed them exchanging strange looks when everyone was here and that whole smiling, whispering goodbye they had. There was always that chance she would want to be traded to Team Carlisle. However, she seemed solidly Team Edward, he must not have done too much damage.

"He told me he loves you," she said, after releasing her lip from her teeth.

"Ha!" I laughed out loud. I didn't know this was going to be a joke.

She looked at me disapprovingly. "I'm serious. He told me he has always been kind of afraid of you, I guess."

"Afraid of me? What makes me so scary?" I asked, scrunching up my face in confusion.

"He's been afraid of you from the day you were born. He told me how small you were as a baby. How he thought you were breakable. How nervous he felt around you. Then as you grew up, he felt like he spent all his time trying to keep you from getting hurt."

"Okay..." I knew I was an accident prone kid. I didn't know it freaked my father out.

"He talked about how you were kind of _challenging _especially in comparison to Emmett."

I laughed again. Challenging. That was one way to put it. Disappointing, annoying, embarrassing. I could think of all the adjectives my father would have for me. In comparison to Emmett, I was definitely the devil.

"He wanted me to know that he spent a lot of time worrying about you. He worried something bad was going to happen to you. He thought as you got older, you rebelled against him because you didn't care about yourself or him or anyone for that matter."

"I care about shit. He knows I care about my mom," I said, messing with my already messy hair.

"He knows that, but I think he's spent a long time thinking you didn't care if you lived or died. That really scared him."

That made no sense. He's been scared of me not caring about living? I had always thought _he_ didn't care if I lived or died, who the hell cared what I thought about it?

"That's such bullshit." I stood up and walked to the foot of her bed.

"I believe him. I think he's been a total asshole, don't get me wrong. I think he's treated you like shit, and you have every right to be angry with him. But I see now that he's been afraid, afraid to care about you, because he thought you were bound and determined to break his heart. So, he let his fear turn to anger."

"That doesn't make sense. He thought I didn't care so he just decided to not care? Isn't he supposed to be the _dad_, the parent, who's supposed to love his kid no matter what?" I was pacing back and forth in front of her bed.

"He does love you. You just scare the shit out of him. I think he started acting like he didn't care to see if you'd do the opposite. He said you've always done the opposite of whatever he did or wanted you to do. It doesn't excuse what he's done it, just explains it."

"Bullshit. Why did he even tell you all this? He wants you to be afraid of me, too? He wants you to know that I don't give a shit about anything, so don't trust me? Was he trying to tell you not to love me because I'll just fuck this all up eventually?" I was pissed. I did care. I cared about her. I cared more about her than I did anything. _Fuck._ He never wanted me to have the things I wanted.

"Edward," she sighed. "Do you think I would have let him stay in this room for a second if he was saying shit like that? Baby, he told me that he realized today that you do care. That you care about me. And he was blown away by the way you showed how much you cared about me today. I think, maybe, he's happy for us, for you. Happy you're happy."

I stopped pacing and looked down at her in the bed. She was all fucking beautiful and alive and mine but totally crazy. Crazy if she thought my dad gave a fuck about my happiness.

"What?"

"When he left he actually made me promise to take care of you tonight. He said you've had a rough day." She smiled that fucking smile that lit up her whole face.

I shook my head and restarted the pacing. I went back to the chair next to her. I grabbed her hand in mine and kissed it. We sat in silence for a couple minutes while I wrestled with the feelings that were twisting my insides.

"I've had an extremely rough day, by the way. A shit-ass day. The love of my life got shot, my brother's getting laid tonight and I'm not, and now you tell me my father actually approves of something I did and someone I care about for the first time in my life. It's a lot for a fuck up like me to process."

I could hear her snigger. I pressed my forehead to our wrapped up hands. My father might actually want what I thought was best for me? Or maybe I finally just got it right. I didn't know if I would ever be able to figure it out for sure. The good news was that Bella might be the answer to my mother's prayers. Maybe I didn't need to hide from them anymore.

"That's why he hugged you when he left. He was trying to show you he cares," she said so surely.

I looked up at her. "I'm not going to argue with you because we agreed to enjoy not argue. I just don't know, Bella. I don't know if he and I can work through our shit."

"All you can do is try. If I have to stay with my mom a few days, you can try to believe that your dad might actually care about you."

I thought about it a few more minutes. I leaned back over her and rested my head back on her hip. She resumed her hair stroking. It felt so unbelievably good.

"You know when I realized he was hugging me, I thought I might pass out again," I said after she had thoroughly relaxed me. I closed my eyes.

"Again? When did you pass out?" She sounded kind of amused.

"When they told me you were going to be fine. I don't know, all the blood just drained from my brain to my heart I guess. My heart had stopped working, preparing to die if you did."

"Don't talk like that," she said in a different tone. I opened my eyes to see she wasn't smiling anymore. I didn't like it.

I tried to explain, "Bella, without you there is nothing for me. I've spent my whole life trying to find a place where I fit in, where I belong. When we were together in Chicago, that was the first time I felt something even close to that. When we broke up, I was ready to leave again, restart my search. The last two days, being with you again, knowing that you care about me, I realized that _you_ are my home. With you is where I belong. I would be back to being a homeless outcast if it weren't for you."

"See, your dad knows you better than you think," she said with a single tear trailing down her cheek.

I didn't know if she was right. I only knew I didn't say all that to make her cry. I didn't want her to cry. I sat up and then moved closer to her face. I kissed her cheek and then her soft, pink lips. I wiped under her eye with my thumb.

"Don't cry, Bella."

"I'm crying because I'm happy. I was thinking earlier about how tonight was the first time I have felt at home since my dad died. You made it possible for me to belong, too. I can't begin to tell you what that means to me. I love you, Edward."

"I love you. More than I ever thought possible." I intertwined my fingers in hers. I smiled my half smile, and she squeezed my hand.

"Don't smile like that at me, it makes me want to get out of this damn bed and have my way with you in the bathroom, nurses or no nurses."

I sat back in my chair, my shoulders shaking from laughter. She joined me in my giggle fest. She was going to be the reason I was going to have to learn to piss upside down.

"Funny girl, I can't wait to get you out of that bed or maybe just climb in with you; but tonight, you're going to rest. We have plenty of time and millions of bathrooms in our future." I leaned over her again, kissed her forehead and pecked her again on her lips. I had to control myself because she was injured and slamming her up against a wall was not possible yet.

"Millions of bathrooms? That seems like a lot, I mean considering we might want to also do it in bed and other places, too."

"Other places? What kind of places?" I leaned forward, my elbows on my knees. I could handle her talking a little dirty, maybe.

"Well, there are a lot of other rooms, like the living room, the kitchen-"

"The kitchen? That could be interesting. It would be nice to have something that tastes good in my kitchen for once." I ran my fingers along her arm. She blushed the perfect shade of red.

"There the laundry room, I hear that there's nothing like sex on a washing machine on the spin cycle." She quirked an eyebrow, and I was rethinking the idea of letting her rest.

"So you've heard, have you?"

"Your future sister-in-law is full of interesting stories, let me tell you."

"Okay, stop right there. Any more information and you'll ruin it for me. I can't have any visuals of my brother in my head or we're done for," I said, waving my hands in front of me.

She giggled softly. I fucking loved that.

"Sorry," she said, looking at me with those big brown eyes. I fucking loved that, too.

"What about outside? We can do it in a tent, on a balcony, in a hot tub," I suggested. I could get very used to finding fun and exciting place to make love to Bella.

"What's with guys and hot tubs? I don't get the whole sex in water thing."

"For a girl who loves it in the bathroom, don't knock it. We could start in the bathtub if that would help ease you into it," I teased.

She gave me the crook eye. "I should never have taken you into that bathroom. I will never live it down, will I?"

"Hey, you brought it back up. That makes it fair game. And for the record that is going down in history as one of the best moments of my life. Don't take it away from me. I'll be good. No more teasing."

"Yeah, well bathroom number two was my favorite. That one goes down as the best sex of my life," she said as I watched her eyelids getting heavy. She was exhausted on top of having some massive painkillers in her system.

"You should get some sleep. Tomorrow we get to go to your mom's again."

She moaned and forced her eyes back open. "You owe me big time for agreeing to that."

"I owe you for asking you to spend time with your family?" I asked, squinting one eye.

"I take that back, you'll learn your lesson the hard way when you eat your first meal à la Renee. I learned how to cook from my gran, not from my mother." Her eyes started to close again.

"They deliver pizza in Port Angeles, right?" I asked. A smile crept across her face as I gave her a kiss goodnight. Then I found my spot, back on her hip with her hand in my hair as we both drifted off to sleep.


	43. Epilogue The Wedding

BPOV

I was standing on a dance floor. This was not right. I had warned Edward several times that if he kept me out here much longer, he wasn't going to be able to walk the next day. However, the magnificent crooked grin on his face made it impossible for me to not stay in his arms as he slowly twirled me around in a slow dance.

"That was quite a wedding," he murmured into my ear.

"Alice absolutely outdid herself. I am pretty sure that was the most beautiful wedding I have ever been to," I said, pulling my head back so I could stare into his brilliant eyes.

"I would have to agree." He smirked. "And your dress," he continued, releasing me from his arm and grabbing my hands so he could look me over, "is pretty much the best thing I have ever seen on you. I will never understand why you object to dresses. You look resplendent."

"That's a very fancy word. Have you been watching Jeopardy again?"

"Hey, I'm fancy, look at me," he said, straightening his tie with one hand and raising his chin up proudly.

"You look very fancy and quite irresistible," I said, raising an eyebrow and letting my tongue dart out along my bottom lip.

"It is you that is simply mouthwatering," he replied seductively. I could feel my cheeks warm up. I pressed myself back into him. He brushed his lips on my neck and leaned down to kiss the scar on my chest, something that couldn't be hidden today because of the straplessness of the dress I was wearing. Edward had made a point to kiss me right there several times a day ever since the bandages came off. It was a way to remind us both that we could never take each other for granted, something I knew I could and would never do. I think he also did it to show me that he loved me regardless of my "flaws".

He spun me around, almost lifting me right off my feet as the song came to an end. Then he dipped me and kissed me on the collarbone. As he lifted me up, I could see Emmett standing next to us, looking so handsome in his tuxedo. Once I was standing straight again, I turned to see Rosalie standing with him. She was a vision, in fact she was absolutely glowing.

"So are you going to hog her all night or is anyone going to be able to cut in here?" Emmett smiled, his dimples showing.

Edward kept an arm tight around my waist and squinted at his brother. "Sorry her dance card is full."

"What if she wants to dance with me?" Emmett challenged.

"Seriously, Em, your brother is actually doing you a favor, trust me. I think that he's trying to be a gentleman and not reveal my horrible dancing skills."

"Bells, anything he can handle, you know I can handle. I've always been the tougher one." Emmett gave Edward a friendly punch to the shoulder.

Edward's grip on me never lessened. "Whatever, Em. You know I've never been good at sharing."

"Well, while you two fight over Bella, I'll just go find someone who finds me a worthy dance partner." Rosalie pretended to pout.

Emmett wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off her feet, kissing her under her ear playfully.

"Mrs. Cullen, you know there is only one woman for me, forever," Emmett said just loud enough for us to overhear. They were so perfect for one another. I couldn't help but stare. Everything that had happened had only made them more devoted, more in love.

"Hey, you guys!" Alice chirped as she skipped over to us with Jasper in tow. She was the devil disguised in a lovely bridesmaid dress. "I want to get a couple more pictures of everyone together."

I groaned, we had taken about five hundred billion pictures today. _Seriously._ How many more did we need to memorialize one event? Not that it wasn't an important event, just overkill had set in.

"Bella, behave," she warned me with an angry glare.

"Alice, seriously. We have taken so many pictures. You have enough pictures of today to wallpaper every room in Hale Tower."

"Don't make me hurt you," Alice hissed. "You will humor me, because you do not want to see me angry."

"Do what she says, baby. Angry Alice might be able to take Badass Bella," Edward said, pulling me back slightly from where Alice was standing.

Alice had us all stand on the edge of the dance floor and motioned for the photographer to come over and take some shots of the six of us. She also wanted a couple of me and Rosalie together.

"Ok, groom and best man," she said, shoving Edward and Emmett next to each other. Edward was now rolling his eyes.

As I stepped away from him, I whispered, "I think I can take Annoying Alice, though."

He smirked and seemed to be considering my chances as the two brothers got their picture taken.

"Okay, now the four of you." Alice grabbed me by the wrist and yanked me back over. I was so close to getting away. Again, how many pictures did we need?

"Last ones, Alice, or else I'm going to start making faces and ruin all the rest," I warned.

"I dare you, Isabella. I dare you," she threatened back, unfazed. _Damn her._ She would probably make the photographer stalk me the rest of the night if I didn't cooperate. That or follow me home.

"First, do one with Edward next to Emmett and Rose next to Bella then bride and groom switch places," Alice directed. She was so damn bossy. Rosalie put her arm around my waist, and I did the same. I smiled and prayed for the camera to accidentally fall on the ground and break or something. Anything to stop this torture.

We rearranged ourselves one more time. Now Emmett was standing next to me. He roped one of his big arms around me.

"Perhaps you could keep your hands on your own Mrs. Cullen. This one is mine," Edward said, grabbing Emmett's hand and removing it from me. He grabbed me tightly and pulled me close to his body.

"Geesh, being married all of a few hours sure has made you possessive, baby brother. Come here, Rose. We're going to do this one our way," Emmett said, putting a hand out to pull her over to him. He shifted his stance and wrapped both of his arms around Rosalie's pregnant belly. They were the best looking best man and matron of honor I had ever seen.

The photographer took a couple pictures of us and then Alice let him go, reminding him that he needed to get shot of Edward and me leaving the reception.

"Alice, I'm begging you, enough with the pictures," I whined. Being married had made me kind of a complainer. Well, only about photographs, marriage in general was quite perfect. Or maybe it was being married to Edward that made it just right.

"Listen, your sister and brother over there cancelled the wedding of the century and left me with nothing to show for all my hard work. You are going to let me have my fun, throwing the greatest wedding of all time for one of my best friends or so help me, Bella!" Angry Alice could definitely take Badass Bella. Of that, I was sure.

"Come, Mrs. Cullen, before you force me to use my ninja skills on her," Edward whispered in my ear, pulling me safely to an empty corner of the room.

We watched the guests mingle and dance. We laughed as my mother danced with her new boyfriend. Thanks to Edward's encouragement, she moved to the Chicago suburbs to be closer to us about six months ago. Edward and my mom were best buddies. She adored him and he, in turn, treated her with such kindness and acceptance. I sometimes felt jealous of their relationship but realized that they each needed the unconditional and nonjudgemental support the other provided. They needed to know they had that from someone else other than me. Edward had gotten her to take up an interest in baseball, something my father never accomplished as a devout Mariners fan. Edward took her to a bunch of Cubs games and to some minor league games as well. That was where she met Phil. He coached a minor league team with hopes of being a coach in the majors some day. He and Edward got along so well, with their love of baseball in common. He was a little younger than my mom but seemed to make her happy. Phil was growing on me, he was a good guy, but I was eternally my father's daughter, so my guard was still up a little. My mom had earned her three month sobriety chip last week and was looking better than I had seen her in a long time. We had our ups and downs since she moved out here, but we had more good days than bad and that was more than I could ask for.

Emmett had taken his brother's advice and had his hands all over Rose on the dance floor. They had opted not to have their big fancy wedding a year ago. Instead they marched over to city hall the day after I got out of the hospital and, in front of just a handful of us, were married. To her mother's great dismay, Rose saw to it that the only something blue she had on her was a note Emmett had written on blue paper, which said _Rosalie and Emmett Forever_. She cracked us all up by shoving it into her bra so it would be close to her heart. Rose and her parents struggled to get over some of the issues that arose out of the whole kidnapping drama. Getting married at city hall didn't help much. Her mother almost refused to come and didn't speak to her for a month after. Theirs would always be a strained relationship most likely. Rosalie always saw the world differently than her parents. Now that she was married and having a family of her own, it only became clearer that they did not have the same values. Rose was seven months pregnant and they knew it was going to be a girl. Emmett was so excited and couldn't wait to take care of his little princess. There wasn't a luckier child in the world than that one. She was going to be born into a family full of love. Edward and I were so happy for them, just sad that we lived so far apart, especially as it got closer to the baby's arrival.

It was good to see Rosalie and Emmett so happy. Newton had almost ruined everything but, despite being a complete bastard, had done one good thing. He had kept records, detailed records of everything he did for the Volturi brothers. He had kept stolen evidence and had recorded phone calls. He had kept track of others in law enforcement, the DA's office, and the courthouse, who were connected to the Volturi. He had a huge collection of things that, while he was alive, would have sent him and them to jail for a very long time. Now, however, he was buried six feet under while Aro, Marcus, Ciaus, and all of their accomplices were facing anywhere from a few years to life in prison. Emmett and the FBI were seeing to that. This thing was bigger than any of us knew, crossing state lines. There were even some international issues. New details were surfacing all the time. Things would be tense over the next few months but the case was solid, at least from Emmett's point of view.

"There's the happy couple. Hope you two are having as much fun as all your guests seem to be having," Carlisle said as he and Esme approached us.

"The happiest people in the room," I said, smiling. I felt like that smile had been frozen on my face all day.

"Bella, I must say one more time, you are the most beautiful bride I have ever seen. Everyone I spoken to today has wholeheartedly agreed with me," Esme said, touching my arm gently.

Edward squeezed me closer to him. I could smell his delicious scent, making me want to get out of this place sooner than later so we could be alone. "She can't hear it enough in my opinion, Mother."

"Thank you, Esme. And thank you" - I looked to Carlisle - "for the lovely father-daughter dance. I really do hope that I didn't do too much damage to your toes. My father thanks you for taking the hit, I'm sure."

"I should be fine. In a day or so, I'm sure the pain will subside." He smiled and stole a glance at Edward, who was also smiling. They both had taken a beating from me today out on the dance floor and had been polite enough not to give me a hard time about it.

Carlisle was kind enough to agree to not only dance with me for the father-daughter dance but also to walk me down the aisle. He did not have a daughter to ever do that for, and I was missing my father. We had worked hard to mend some fences between Edward and his father. Again, things weren't perfect, but they had more positive exchanges than negative. Carlisle and Esme even flew out for Edward's big gallery show a couple months ago. They were both blown away by what they saw. Carlisle even bought some prints. He insisted on paying for them as a way to show his support for Edward as a real artist. I convinced Edward that he should accept it and be grateful. Edward and his father were never going to going to be close, but they were going to be more successful at finding a middle ground than Rosalie and her parents.

We chatted a little with Edward's parents until Esme dragged Carlisle off to the dance floor to dance to her favorite song. A few people wandered over and said their goodbyes. The night was winding down. Peter and his wife came over to wish us well and say goodnight. They had to get home to their children. Peter teased me a little about the dress and let me know he was buying coffee for the next month because he won the bet about what I would wear.

"I'm not sure I'll ever be able to look at you the same, Detective Swan, I mean Cullen," Peter corrected himself before Edward could say anything.

"Well, just remember, I could still kick your ass even in a dress and heels. If I hear one joke about it when I get back from my honeymoon, you'll be very sorry," I warned. We hugged goodbye and Charlotte gave me a wink and complimented me on my ability to hold my own with all the men I was surrounded by at work. The guys at the station had been giving me a hard time for weeks. They sent emails with my head photoshopped on different bride bodies. It was obnoxious. There was a "will she, won't she" bet over the dress. I was hoping now that this was all over, they would move on to something else. I had worn the ridiculously expensive dress that Alice had picked out and Rosalie begged to buy for me. Those two had been relentless. Now, here I was in some strapless Jim Hjelm couture that hugged every inch of me in ways that had Edward begging to take me to the honeymoon suite before the reception even started. I guessed it was worth in that respect. He was definitely having a hard time taking his hands off me and that was fine by me.

The way Edward looked today left me speechless. Edward looked unbelievable in jeans and a t-shirt so Edward in a tux - _oh my_. He was lucky I didn't lick him when his father handed me over to him. His hair was sticking up but in a perfect kind of way. He seemed to be trying really hard not to mess with it today. His hands were always on me, so that helped keep them out of his hair. He was clean shaven and smelled like sandalwood with a hint of citrus, it was so sexy. Again, I just wanted to lick him, right along his jawline. I kept trying to wrap my head around the fact that he was all mine. Until death do us part, according to our vows. We had spent the last year enjoying the simplicity of our everyday life together. Reuniting in Seattle under such a stressful circumstance had me worried in the beginning. I hoped that once the intensity of everything going on around us waned, the intensity of what we felt for one another would remained strong. I was wrong, but in a good way. Somehow without all the distractions, we were able to find a deeper love for one another. Sometimes we got to be fun and spontaneous. Other times we were relaxed and friendly. There was a comfort we found in one another that told me he was my friend as much as he was my lover. Of course, we could definitely be hot and steamy as well. Rosalie was absolutely telling the truth about the washing machine. We gave into the lust and the desire when we needed to. There were so many facets to our relationship that opened up once we only had the two of us to worry about.

What I loved most about our relationship was that we were both whole people. It wasn't easy for Edward, at first, to believe that he wasn't damaged goods. It was beyond me how he could see himself that way. When we got back to Chicago, he wanted to move fast, lose himself in me. I convinced him that we should go slow. We didn't need to move in together right away, and he needed to figure out what he wanted to do with himself. He got a few freelance photography jobs. He hooked up with some people and began doing some work for the Cubs and White Sox. He took some pictures at games and sold a few to some magazines like Sports Illustrated and ESPN Magazine. He had found a good mix of two things he really enjoyed. He started to believe that he was capable of doing good things. He still had some moments of self-doubt, but he knew he was something, something more than just someone who loved me. I didn't need him to complete me and he didn't need me to complete him. We instead _complimented_ each other perfectly. We were partners, both able to give and take. I loved him desperately, but I was not desperate. It made me even more confident that what we have will last forever.

* * *

EPOV

I was standing in the corner of the reception hall with my arm wrapped around my bride's tiny little waist. She was wearing some ivory dream that pushed up her perfect breasts and showed off her sweet curves in a way that made it hard for me to focus on anything other than her. She was the most gorgeous woman I have ever set eyes on. She was my wife. Bella was my wife. What an amazing fact. We had waited a year to tie the knot. I would have married her the same day Emmett and Rosalie got married, but she wanted to take things slowly. She didn't even let me move in with her right away. She wanted to make sure that I took care of myself first. She wanted to make sure that I wasn't going to drown in her instead of learning to swim on my own. I ran my fingers over the exit wound scar on her back as we stood together. Her scars were my constant reminder that I almost lost her. I think I freaked her out when I told her that I wanted to die if she had died. It was true at the time. I couldn't imagine living in a world without Bella. A year ago, I felt like I was nothing. Without her, I would have been better off dead. Now though, I was more. I was someone with a good job, I had good friends, and I had a better relationship with my family. I was going to be an uncle for God's sake. I was valued by more than just her. She had been right. Now I was ready to be her true partner. I was healthy enough to let her care for me and for me to take care of her, making things better for her everyday. The best part was Bella loved me as much today as she did a year ago. Maybe a little more, but basically, she always knew what I was. She knew I was more when I didn't, couldn't.

Once I figured out that I really deserved her, I asked her to marry me. We were engaged six months ago and we were worried about not giving Alice enough time to plan the most over the top wedding in Chicago history. Alice was a master at her craft though. Even in an unfamiliar city, she planned the wedding of my dreams. The ceremony had been a this really old but breathtaking church downtown. We had the reception in the Sears Tower, or whatever they call it now. There were flowers and candles on every table that smelled almost as good as my Bella. There were a lot of people here I didn't know, but everyone I loved was here as well. Bella wore a stunning smile all day, except when Alice forced her to stand in front of the camera. She had no idea how fantastic she looked, how there should be a million pictures of her looking as beautiful as she does today. I never wanted the memory of today to fade.

Renee and Phil came over to chat with us. Renee was having a good time without any alcohol. I was so proud of her. She had been clean for three months. She had worked so hard. She really wanted to make Bella proud of her. She wanted to be healthy and strong for the wedding and had done just that. Renee and I had a lot in common. Our self-loathing was our greatest weakness, but our love for Bella was our greatest strength. She looked fabulous and had not done anything to embarrass Bella all day. I got lucky in the mother-in-law department.

"This DJ is great! What are you two doing over here?" Renee asked, grabbing Bella's hand like she was about to drag her out there.

"No more for me, Mom. Me and dancing, not a good idea," Bella protested and Renee grabbed my hand instead.

"Well, Isabella, then I will take your wonderful husband here. Someone needs to get him out there. I saw your moves, Mr. Cullen. You are a natural." Renee pulled me away from my bride. I gave Bella the _I'll be right back_ look and she just shook her head, snickering.

"Don't mind me! I'll keep Bella company!" Phil yelled to us.

We got out there right when the fast song was coming to an end. The next song was Unchained Melody. I bowed and Renee curtsied. I took her hand and pulled her closer, so we could slow dance.

"You seem very happy, Edward." She smiled up at me.

"Very happy doesn't even begin to describe how I feel. I'm _married_ to the most wonderful woman in the world. I don't know what you would call it but happy doesn't seem to do how I feel justice," I replied, smiling my crooked smile at her.

"She is so lucky. Her father would have been thrilled for you two." I saw the sadness in her eyes, but she recovered quickly as I gave her a little squeeze. I wanted her to know I understood that this was a hard day without Charlie here.

"I promise to take good care of her, every day."

"Oh, I know. You've proved that already. She's happier than I could ever hope for. You guys have something very special." The tears in her eyes were starting to overtake her.

I pulled her close so she could put her head on my shoulder and wipe her tears away. She took a moment and then pulled back.

"So, your dad was on his best behavior tonight."

"Yes, he was. He really likes Bella so that helps, you know." I knew that if it weren't for Bella, there would be no hope for me and my father.

"He likes you, too. We've been over this. How can anyone not like you?" She reached up and pinched my cheek.

"Well, I know you like me. Nobody else really matters." I winked and spun her around. She laughed easily, and we danced without talking for the rest of the song. When it ended, I gave her a huge hug. Renee and I were good for one another. She always told me how awesome I was, and I tried to never make her feel bad about who she was. Renee could be crazy and she had her demons but her heart was good. She was as loving as Bella and that made it impossible to not love her back. I was glad she and Bella were closer now. It was something I took full credit for making better.

We danced to the next two fast ones and then I saw my wife and that elfin wedding planner. They looked like they were arguing again.

"I think I need to go rescue my wife from the angry elf," I said into Renee's ear as the music boomed. Renee looked over my shoulder and could see Bella and Alice having a heated conversation. She nodded, and we walked back over to them. Renee grabbed Phil who was standing motionless next to Bella, looking more or less afraid of Alice. They headed back to the dance floor, escaping like I wished Bella and I could.

"Alice, I don't want to take any pictures of us walking out to the limo. Not every single second of this day needs to be documented!" Bella sounded exasperated.

"You say that now, but a few months from now, you'll realize this day went by in a blur, and you'll be happy that you have the pictures. I promise you!" Alice was relentless.

"There are five hundred billion pictures, there was a videographer, there is no way in hell I will not remember what happened here tonight!" Bella argued. I stepped to her side and wrapped my arm around her waist.

"Alice, we completely and totally appreciate every single thing you have done for us. This was the most wonderful wedding I have ever been to. We cannot thank you enough for all your time and effort. But if the bride says no more pictures, please, no more pictures. I promise you, she will have no regrets. We will never forget what a perfect day you planned for us. We owe you so much." I went in for the hug as Alice stood there blankly staring at me with her mouth slightly agape.

"You, you're welcome," she mumbled as she hugged me back.

"You are the greatest wedding planner on the planet, Alice. We had several people say they wished you worked out here instead of Seattle. Thank you so much." Bella realized my tactic might actually work, so she went in for the hug after me.

"I love you so much, Bells. I just want everything to be perfect for you. I want you to remember this night forever." Alice bit her lip and looked like she was going to cry.

"I love you, too; you crazy, photo-obsessed friend of mine." Bella hugged her again, and finally, Jasper appeared and told Alice he needed her for something.

Bella threw herself in my arms.

"I knew there were other reasons I married you," she said against my chest.

"Other than what?" I asked, wondering what that could possibly mean.

"Other than the fact that you are the hottest guy in the room. You are definitely more, Mr. Cullen. Definitely more." She smiled up and me and kissed me on the lips.

"Good to know, because sometimes I worry you only love me for my looks. I mean, looks can fade. Some day I'll be old and gray and wrinkly," I looked down on her and pressed my lips to her forehead.

"You'll still be beautiful because you are beautiful inside as well as out."

"I could get really wrinkly. And smelly. Old people get that smell, you know? That old people smell. Someday that will be me. And I could grow like massive amounts of nose and ear hair, like your great uncle over there." I nodded in the direction of her Uncle Harry. The guy looked like he was a hundred and nine and there was hair coming out of both ears, his nose, not to mention his eyebrows were out of control. No hair on his head anymore. How did that happen?

Bella began to laugh and hugged me tighter.

"Be nice."

"I'm nice."

"Yes, you're very nice," she sighed. "When can we go? I am so ready to get out of this dress."

I perked up at that thought. "If you're ready to get naked, then we are ready to go! I have been waiting all day to hear you say that." I pulled away from her and looked around the room, checking for a safe way out.

"Bells!" Rosalie called. She waddled over to us. I wanted to be mad, but she was my favorite pregnant sister-in-law. I couldn't be mad at a pregnant lady.

They talked. _So great_, blah, blah, _sisters now_, blah, blah blah, _Mrs. Cullen, _blah, blah, _heading out, _blah, blah, _something blue, _giggle, giggle. All I could think about was getting out of here and getting my wife out of her dress. Rosalie hugged Bella and then me.

"You two have fun. Call us when you get back," Rosalie said as she released me from her arms.

"We will. Bye, little one," I said, leaning down to talk to my niece. "Don't do anything until Auntie Bella and Uncle Edward come back from their honeymoon." Rosalie had a couple months left but she looked like she was ready to pop. I couldn't imagine what she was going to look like in a few more weeks.

I grabbed Bella's hand and kind of felt like we were in Mission Impossible, trying to get through the hallways without getting caught.

"So, what was that about your something blue? You two started giggling like school girls," I said as we were waiting for the elevator.

"I have a special something blue for you." She bit her lip and wouldn't look at me.

"Something special for me? What is that? Do you have a fucking five million dollar diamond hiding somewhere?" I grabbed her and pretended to frisk her.

She was giggling again, and her fucking boobs were jiggling right in front of me. _Let's go elevator! Hurry, hurry, hurry!_

"No diamonds, but it is hidden under this dress." Again, she bit her lip.

Something blue was hiding under her dress, for me. She put her hand on my shoulder and whispered into my ear, "I know you love me in the color blue, so the thong I'm wearing is just for you."

_Fuck. Elevator where are you?_

She could see my excitement. I noticed her look over my shoulder. Suddenly the biggest smile lit up her face.

She grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the elevators just as it dinged upon arrival.

"Whoa, where are we going? The elevator's here. Elevator leads to limo, limo leads to hotel, hotel leads to something fucking blue," I said, becoming more distressed by the minute as we got farther from the elevator.

Bella shoved open a door and shouted inside, "Hello?"

No one answered, and she pulled me in the room with her. She reached around me and turned the lock on the door. _Holy shit._ The women's bathroom. It was like some sort of suite. There was a whole separate room with a upholstered bench and giant mirror.

"Mrs. Cullen. I swear to God you better not be teasing me," I said, running my hand through my hair. I didn't care what my hair looked like anymore.

"Mr. Cullen, I take sex in the bathroom very seriously. I would not tease you." She was looking at me with her sex eyes, and I knew that we were going to consummate our marriage in this room. She was so fucking hot.

"What about this dress? There's so much of it." I wasn't sure how to work around it so I could enjoy her something blue.

She turned around and lifted up her hair. "Start unbuttoning."

She didn't have to ask twice. It looked complicated, but it wasn't a few buttons, a zipper, and the dress was pooled at her feet. There she was - no bra, only a sapphire blue thong. It was the perfect contrast to her milky white skin. I just wanted to sink my teeth into her.

"Fuck," I mumbled at the sight of her. "I love you, Mrs. Cullen."

"I love you, Mr. Cullen." She turned to face me and let me look at her for a minute before pressing her body against mine and kissing me hard. She dragged her tongue along my jaw.

"I have wanted to do that all day," she said a little breathlessly.

I held her face in my hand and began to kiss her again. Our tongues found each other like lost lovers. I ran my other hand along her back. She moaned in my mouth. I pushed her back up against the wall, and she slid her hands on my shoulders, slipping my jacket off. I unloosened my tie and unbuttoned the top button. Her hands quickly moved to my pants. She unbuckled, unbutton, and unzipped. I kicked off my shoes and let my pants drop. I set her on the bench and help slide her out of her something blue. Those were now mine. Just like she was. All mine. I kissed down her body, enjoying all the different parts of her. She moaned again as I licked around her belly button. That was going to drive me insane. The way she responded to me was such a turn on.

She pushed me up and got off the bench. Then she spun me, yanked down my boxers, and sat me down on it. She straddled me and whispered, "Together, forever." Then she lowered herself down on me. I couldn't see straight, but I was in heaven.

Together, forever. Me and my wife. Bathrooms everywhere beware.

**A/N: That's it. I want to cry because it is over. Did you all guess who's wedding it was or did I surprise some of you? Had to get both their perspectives on this day, only seemed fair. Already thinking about doing a sequel. I imagine the Volturi could not be taken down so easy. We'll have to see where my ideas take me... Thanks for reading! Review, review, it's over. Tell me what you think!**


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